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75 




Poultry 


Packers' 


Guide 




— BY— 




M. 


u - 




-^ 




A Compendium of Useful Information 


for Poultry Dressers 






J^ 






Copyright, 

1909 

By M. V. BlCKEL. 








TABLE OP CONTENTS. 



Prefatory Note 3 

Chapter I, Introductory 4 

Chapter II, Buying, Shipping and Holding 6 

Chapter III, Milk Feeding 9 

Chapter IV, Dressing, Scalding 12 

Chapter V, Dressing, Dry Picking 13 

Chapter VI, Dressing Ducks and Geese 15 

Chapter VII, Dressing Capons, Guineas, Squabs, Pigeons 16 

Chapter VIII, Feathers 17 

Chapter IX, Cooling 17 

Chapter X, Grading and Packing, Quality 21 

Chapter XI, Grading and Packing, Classification 25 

Chapter XII, Grading and Packing, Styles of Packing 27 

Chapter XIII, Grading and Packing, Box Specifications 30 

Chapter XIV, Grading and Packing, Systems of 35 

Chapter XV, Stencilling 42 

Chapter XVI, Pre-Cooling and Shipping 44 

Chapter XVII, Freezing and Marketing 45 

Chapter XVIII, Supplementary 47 



Eratta — In tabulated head on Page 36, Column 3, should read "Weight Per Bird" instead 
of Weight Per Dozen. 



;i.A2534I6 



Os. 



s 



CT^ 

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DESCRIPTIONS OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



ILLUSTRATION 1 — ^The birds are Fancy Chickens assorted as to 
size. Beginning at the left the figures 5, 10, 15, 17, 18, 25, 
34 and 35 refer to Systems A and B, pages 36 to 41 inclusive; 
Box 19 contains Fancy Springs packed Export Style, Variation 
2 (G), see p. 29; Box 21 contains Fancy Chickens packed Stan- 
dard Broiler Style (A), see p. 27; Box 34 contains Fancy 
Springs packed Standard Roaster Style (H), see p. 29; Box 75 
contains Ducks packed Standard Duck Style (N), see p. 30. 

ILLUSTRATION 2 — Bird on left hand of illustration is a Broiler 
correctly dressed and with wings tucked back or "broken." 
Ducks and Broilers or any birds packed breasts up appear to 
better advantage with the wings tucked; center bird is a poorly 
country dressed bird badly scarred and poorly finished; right 
hand bird is a roaster properly dressed, but the wing fans 
should have been plucked. 

ILLUSTRATION 3 — Front, Side and Back Views of Capon Dressed 
Chickens. 

ILLUSTRATION 4 — Cooling Rack, see p. 20. 

ILLUSTRATION 5 — Wrapping Heads, see pages 24 and 25. 

ILLUSTRATION 6 — Cooling Racks in use, see p. 2 0. 

ILLUSTRATION 7 — Grading, see p. 22. 

ILLUSTRATION 8 — Single Layer Roaster Style (K), see p. 29. 



The Poultry Packers' Guide. 



Prefatory Note. 

Where the demand for poultry is greater than the supply, 
a considerable amount is dressed by the farmer or poultry 
raiser and sold direct to the housewife, and the remainder is 
bought as needed by butchers, slaughtered and sold to their 
customers. A large part of the poultry raised in the Eastern 
states, and a limited amount in all parts of the country, is 
disposed of in this manner. 

Where the supply exceeds the demand, the surplus is 
disposed of to packers or produce dealers. If the surplus is 
small and the market close at hand, the packer soon ascer- 
tains by experience the requirements of the particular market 
that he uses. Consequently, the output of these various pack- 
ers differs considerably in style of dressing and package. 

In those localities where a large surplus of poultry is rais- 
ed, the packer must depend upon a wider outlet, and not al- 
ways knowing his market at the time the poultry is being 
dressed, he should put up his stock in such a manner that it 
will be acceptable on all of the larger markets. 

A vast amount of poultry is still being prepared for the 
larger markets in a careless and haphazard manner, not graded 
as to size or quality, packed in second hand barrels or boxes 
not uniform in shape or size and all very unattractive in ap- 
pearance, but each year on account of the competition of 
properly prepared and standard packed poultry it has become 
more difficult to dispose of such stock at a profit. 

The poultry packer engages in the business primarily to 
make a profit. It is true that the profit in the poultry business 
is governed to a considerable extent by several factors which 
are not under the control of the operator and which make the 
business speculative in nature. These factors are (i) the un- 
certain weather conditions during the packing season, (2) the 
impossibility of determining at the time the poultry is dressed 
the prices that will move the goods into the consumptive chan- 
nel. This factor is caused by the difficulty of obtaining ade- 
quate or exact information concerning the supply of poultry in 
the country. (3) To some extent the variance of the quality 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



and condition of the live poultry as purchased from the farmer, 
though generall)'- the average quality of the poultry in the same 
community, is the same each year. 

However, the buying, handling, feeding, dressing, grading, 
packing and marketing poultry are the factors in the busmess 
governing profit that are directly under the control of the 
operator. 

The methods of preparing poultry for market used by 
practically all of the larger poultry packers, and by a consider- 
able number of the small packers, have advanced very rapidly 
during the past decade and are now approaching an exact 
science. 

Information how to put up and handle standard packed 
poultry has been difficult to obtain by those desiring to go 
into the business on a large scale or by those in the business 
on a small scale desiring to put up their poultry in a better 
manner. Heretofore there have been but two ways of obtain- 
ing this information — by actual experience or by employing 
the services of poultry experts, both of which are expensive. 

Any literature or information of a reliable nature tending 
to standardize and improve the methods in vogue is in demand 
and believing that there is need for a work that deals with 
the poultry dressing business in a more comprehensive man- 
ner than anything yet published, the writer has undertaken 
to furnish a hand book of reliable information gained from ac- 
tual experience, exhaustive inquiry and careful observation. 
Using the information, and following out the instructions 
given on the following pages will enable the poultry packer, 
either large or small, to prepare his poultry in the most ap- 
proved and attractive manner and get it to the market in the 
most wholesome condition ; and thus will obtain the maximum 
market price and consequently a larger profit. 



CHAPTER I. 
Introductory. 

The source of supply of poultry for the Eastern markets 
has been gradually moving westward and at present the largest 
proportion comes from the middle Western states. 

There are few exclusively poultry farms in this territory 
and practically none given entirely to the raising of market 
poultry. Poultry raising on the general farms is a side line 
and is not carried on in a scientific manner. 

A portion of the poultry in all communities is of a good 
table quality and fairly well fatted when marketed. This por- 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



tion varies greatly in different localities. Where Plymouth 
Rocks and other "American" breeds, such as the Wyandottes 
and Rhode Island Reds, predominate, the average quality of 
the packer's output is higher than in communities in which the 
Leghorn or small, scrubby stock is more numerous. Various 
methods have been tried in different communities to raise the 
grade of table poultry with varying, and in most places, in- 
different results. It is indeed a stupendous, or almost impos- 
sible, undertaking for a packer in some communities to im- 
prove the quality of the product. The most practical thing to 
do is to buy the raw material at right prices and make the best 
of it with careful handling and proper grading and packing. 
If the stock is exceptionally bad, it m.ay pay to move to 
another locality where the stock is known to be of better grade. 
Some of the methods of improving the quality of poultry 
of a locality that have been used with a degree of success are, 
(i) paying a lower price for Leghorns and other scrubby stock 
than for breeds possessing good table qualities such as the 
Plymouth Rock, the Wyandotte or the Rhode Island Red ; 
(2) selling cockerels of a utility type of the above mentioned 
varieties, that some farmers bring in, to those farmers who 
have poor stock, in order that they may gradually improve 
the table qualities of their flocks ; (3) where no good cockerels 
are bought from customers, importing utility pure bred cock- 
erels and selling them at cost or exchanging pound for pound 
for poultry brought in. 

By a utility t3rpe cockerel is meant a good, blocky bird 
with short shanks and legs set well apart, having a long body 
and a deep, full chest, and of good size. 

Encouraging poultry shows or exhibitions, and offering 
liberal prizes at same or at county fairs on Plymouth Rock 
and other market varieties, and especially on the utility type 
of same, is advised. 

While it is true that the poultry fancier seems to breed 
more for feathers than for anything else, still the standard 
requirements for pure bred poultry are such that breeding for 
shape and size are necessary, and it is well to encourage the 
poultry fancier as much as possible, for it has been found that 
the more poultry fanciers there are in a community, the higher 
the grade of poultry. This is due to the fact that the surplus 
cockerels are generally sold in the neighborhood and if the 
farmer is educated right he will buy only cockerels of the 
breeds recommended above. It has been found that reading 
matter in local papers pointing out the advantages of the mar- 
ket breeds and utility bred stock proves effective. 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



CHAPTER 11. 
Buying, Shipping and Holding. 

The smaller packer buys nearly all of his stock direct from 
the farmer or raiser. In some communities in order to obtain 
a regular supply it is necessary at least part of the year to 
send out buyers with wagons. A light wagon should be used 
and the team should be good travelers, so that sufficient dis- 
tance can be covered to make it pay. The wagons should be 
fitted up with built in coops made of light lumber and wire 
poultry netting. It is well to go over the route the day before 
in a buggy and engage the poultry so that the farmer will have 
a chance to catch up the birds. The telephone can often be 
used by the buyer in engaging the poultry on a proposed 
route. When a route is made regularly, it is obviously not 
necessary to go around twice, as the farmer will know when 
the buyer is coming and will have the poultry caught up and 
ready for him. 

The larger packers depend upon receiving considerable 
of their supply from a distance, shipped in by express or 
freight. Shipments by express come in quicker and with some 
less shrink but at a higher transportation cost. The majority 
are freight shipments. The larger packer secures his supply 
from local buyers who may buy the stock from the farmers 
and sell to the packer or may act as the agent of the packer 
either working on salary or commission. Poultry is frequently 
not handled properly before it reaches the packer and in such 
cases there is considerable shrinkage and more No. 2 birds. 

Care should be taken in making up shipping coops, so 
that the slats on top are so close together that the birds can- 
not get their heads through. Freight handlers are very care- 
less and many birds are killed by slamming one coop down 
upon the other while the birds have their heads up 
between the slats. The coops should also be made with suffi- 
cient distance between the two upper side slats so that the 
birds can get their heads through for feeding and drinking. 
For this purpose use galvanized iron troughs about three 
inches deep, an inch and a half wide at the bottom with a 
width of three inches at the top, made with two hooks for 
hanging over the edge of the next to the top slat. 

Sometimes it is necessary to hold over night a consider- 
able quantity of live poultry without cooping. If this poultry 
is placed in a vacant building or yard and no perches be pro- 
vided, it will very likely pile up into a heap and a considerable 
number will be smothered. All buyers should be informed 
of this peculiarity of chickens and thus prevent a loss that 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



otherwise will probably come to them sooner or later. If 
perches cannot be provided, build a platform ten inches or 
a foot above the floor or ground, leaving the boards wide 
enough apart to permit a good circulation of air and run the 
poultry under this platform. 

In shipping from the buying station to the dressing plant 
by freight, especially if the weather is warm, the buyer should 
insist on the railroad company furnishing a stock car. Also 
during hot weather care should be taken not to overcrowd the 
coops. 

Each variety of poultry in shipping should be cooped sep- 
arately as much as possible. Not only will less loss from dead 
birds result, but it will be much more convenient to weigh in 
and care for the poultry at the dressing plant. 

When the poultry is bought direct by the packer from 
the raiser, the dressed stock will consist of a larger proportion 
of No. I or best quality birds and also there will be less 
shrinkage. The large packer receives the majority of his supply 
of poultry from a distance. Many of his buyers do not under- 
stand how to feed poultry properly. In holding, they either 
overfeed or neglect the stock, generally overfeeding just be- 
fore shipping in an attempt to keep down the shrink. This 
neglect and overfeeding often gives the birds indigestion. A 
bird once sick has little chance to regain weight in a large 
packing plant. 

The large packer often receives more stock than he can 
take care of properly, because when his plant is in a glutted 
condition he has to employ considerable inexperienced and 
incompetent help. Thus it is no wonder that the larger the 
packer the more there is of No. 2 stock. 

Most poultry when received from the raiser is in fair 
condition, and unless it is to be especially fatted by the packer, 
it should be killed and dressed the second day after it is re- 
ceived, or as soon after that as possible, as it will dress out 
much brighter in appearance than if it is killed the same day 
that it is brought in. 

For holding poultry there is nothing better than yards or 
pens. These are constructed on either side of a central drive- 
way which is used in filling the pens, and also in transferring 
from the pens to the killing room. A part of each pen should 
be roofed over and be well protected from the weather. Ample 
perches should be provided which should be hinged so that 
they may be fastened up during the day time. If the perches 
are left down, a considerable portion of the birds will roost 
during the day, especially if the pen is a bit crowded, and 



8 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



will not take sufficient food and thus lose in weight and con- 
dition. 

In inclement and severely cold weather, it will be neces- 
sary to hold in coops under shelter. If, however, birds are 
held any length of time in ordinary shipping coops with no 
chance of cleansing same, they are apt to become "coop 
burnt." Birds in this condition are, in plain language, sick, 
and the causes are the unsanitary conditions of the quarters, 
poor ventilation, and neglect or improper care in feeding. 

In holding poultry, it should be fed on cracked corn, 
moistened with water. VVithold all food 12 or 18 hours be- 
fore killing. Some packers use buttermilk instead of water 
for moistening the food, but this must be used carefully so as 
not to throv/ the birds "off their feed." Grit should be given 
freely and man}?- packers mix with the last "feed" a large por- 
tion of gravel or grit. This will remain in the gizzard and 
intestines and will materially cut down the dressing shrink, 
Ahva3'-s give the poultry plenty of' water before killing as 
this will cause it to dress out brighter, as well as lessening 
tlie shrinkar', . 

If any f i 1 the crop after the bird is dressed an 

opening should be made into the crop at the extreme side and 
just above the wing or shoulder joint and the food taken out. 
Some poultry dressers allow the bird to have some food up to 
the time of dressing and remove what may be in the crop 
after the bird is dressed. This is done to reduce the shrinkage, 
but as it hurts the appearance of the poultry and especially 
lessens its keeping qualities, it should not be practised. Turk- 
eys should invariably be dressed the day they are received, 
for a turkey will not take food in confinement and will shrink 
every day it- is kept. If it is absolutely necessary to hold 
turkeys they should be held in pens. 

It is customary for some packers to "yard feed" ducks 
from two to three weeks. It is well not to begin too early 
in the season, as they make little or no gain if fed in warm 
weather. Feed on dry whole corn and keep a constant supply 
before them. It is well to have water from a hydrant running 
constantly through troughs in the yards, but if this is impos- 
sible, they should be watered very frequently. 

In selecting the location for a yard, choose one that is well 
drained, and if possible, with quite a slope. The yard 
must be kept in a sanitary condition or the ducks will die off, 
generally developing a disease commonly called "sore eyes." 
A duck of its own volition, will not go under shelter, prefer- 
ring the open, and in cold and inclement weather they should 
be well bedded down in the yards with dry straw. 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



After the weather becomes settled, which in Northern 
Iowa, is by the middle of November, it is the practise of the 
larger packers to buy dressed stock from some of their buy- 
ers and from smaller dressers, likewise dressing stock at their 
own buying stations, if same are equipped for this purpose. 
It may be possible to ship in dressed stock earlier, say by 
Nov. 1st, if the packer has artificial cooling facilities and the 
shipper can cool out properly and is near at hand so that the 
poultry will not be delayed in transit. 

The small dresser should follow the same procedure in 
dressing and cooling as outlined for the packer in Chapter 
IX, and should pack his poultry carefully in barrels or large 
packing boxes for shipment, wrapping the heads with news- 
paper and lining the barrels with common wrapping paper; 
care should be taken to keep the poultry clean and in a whole- 
some condition. 

CHAPTER III. 

Milk Feeding. 

In this country during the past ten years poultry has been 
fatted by a special method known as "milk feeding," In Can- 
ada and in England this method is called "crate feeding," and 
has been practiced in England and on the continent for a great 
many years. Various articles have been written for the poul- 
try press, and bulletins issued by experiment stations in this 
country and in Canada, but none of which covers the ground 
in as comprehensive a manner as could be desired. No attempt 
is made in this hand book to give exact directions for milk 
feeding. You are referred to a booklet called "Feeding Chick- 
ens for the Packing Plouse," by F. C. Hare, published by the 
Egg Reporter of Waterloo, Iowa, and which can be obtained 
from the publishers for 35c. This little work contains some 
valuable information, and the rations given, and the directions 
laid down are practical and can be followed out especially • 
by the small packer, with profit. I wish to caution the reader, 
however, concerning Mr. Hare's methods of dressing and 
packing, which are the Canadian methods, but which would 
not be standard in this country. You are referred to follow- 
ing chapters in this hand book on packing poultry and espe- 
cially that part devoted to squatted poultry, for information as 
to standard packing. 

Up to the time of this writing I have found that Milk 
Feeding on a large scale has been successful in an indifferent 
way. While some large operators claim to have made a great 
success, and are fattening more poultry in this manner each 
year, building additional houses equipped for this purpose 



lo POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

and at the same time increasing the facilities at their older 
plants ; others have abandoned it as worse than useless as far 
as profit is concerned. , 

There is no doubt that the quality of some poultry can 
be greatly improved by Milk Feeding when properly done. 
Individual birds take on a large increase of weight and the 
quality of the meat is greatly improved and increased in value, 
but the general profitableness of the carrying on of Milk 
Feeding on a large scale is questioned by many. At times, 
too, there have been quantities of poorly fed birds offered on 
the markets, birds that show the effects of sour and otherwise 
improperly prepared food, birds whose flesh is soft and flabby 
and which falls away in an unsightly manner from the frame- 
work, and these have hurt the reputation of milk fed poultry 
to some extent. However milk fed poultry is and always 
will be in demand. 

My experience leads me to the belief that, while Milk 
Feeding is practical and will give a profit when properly done, 
it is and will be most successful when carried on by the small 
packer. Milk Feeding poultry corresponds to feeding steers 
for market and is of the same character as intensive farming, 
such as market gardening and fruit raising. Feeding steers 
would not be profitable in large stock yards, where all the help 
would be known as "hired help ;" and market gardening and 
fruit raising is most successful when conducted on a small 
scale, and where each farmer or raiser cultivates a small patch 
of ground and does his own work or can oversee it personally. 

The results obtained by some of the smaller packers who 
do the feeding themselves are surprising. In the first place 
they have a decided advantage in the quality of stock they get 
to put on feed. It is brought directly to them from the farms 
and therefore is superior in health and vigor to that of the 
large packer, whose stock is, as I have previously explained, 
indifferently cared for by the buyer before it is shipped, and 
subjected to various hardships during shipment. The small 
packer being able either to feed the birds himself or to watch 
carefully the way they are fed by his help gives him a second 
great advantage. 

Milk Feeding in a general way consists in confining from 
two to ten birds in coops with a slatted bottom permitting the 
droppings to go through to be caught and retained by a sheet 
iron pan, which can be cleaned daily. These coops are in 
batteries of about two dozen. They are three and four tiers 
high and the coops are generally back to back, a dozen on a 
side. They are housed in a well ventilated warm building, 




< 

a: 

-J 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. i£ 

and the sanitary condition should be as nearly perfect as pos- 
sible. 

The food is a ration composed of ground grain, moistened 
sufficiently with skimmed milk or buttermilk so that it will 
pour. In the country buttermilk is almost universally used. The 
grains used are oats, corn, barley, low grade flour, all finely 
ground and bolted, and the remainder of the ration may be 
made up of beef meal, alfalfa meal and tallow. For the pro- 
portions I refer you to Mr. Hare's book. If too much corn meal 
is used, the chickens will pick each others' feathers. This is 
remedied by cutting down the proportion of corn meal, also 
by feeding blood meal or beef scraps. Tallow is fed during 
the last few days in order to give the bird a finished appear- 
ance. Great care should be taken not to over feed. It is not 
deemed necessary to discuss or describe the cramming ma- 
chine as the use of same has been found to be impractical. 

Milk fed chickens intended for export should have a white 
flesh or appearance. This is produced by feeding the proper 
length of time to get rid of the yellow corn color that most 
chickens have when "put on feed." Sometimes it is necessary 
to substitute white corn-meal in the place of yellow. A white 
colored milk fed chicken is fully as much in demand in this 
country as it is in England. Of late, however, a yellow tinted 
milk fed roasting chicken sells on most of our domestic mar- 
kets equally as well as a white tinted chicken and on some 
markets is now preferred and will bring a higher price. The 
yellow color is obtained by an abundant use of yellow corn 
meal. It is possible to finish up a yellow milk fed 
chicken in less time than it takes to give it a white appear- 
ance. 

In selecting birds to be fed, use utility type chickens if 
it is possible to obtain sufficient of this type for the capacity 
of the plant. A broiler is a chicken that weighs under 2% 
or 2j^ pounds. A broiler that weighs 2 pounds or less is 
more valuable than one that is heavier. Broilers are in great 
demand. Fryers are chickens weighing from 25^ to 3^ or 
up to 4 pounds each. They are not in great demand in this 
country and many have to be exported. Sometimes a milk fed 
broiler will bring as high as loc per pound more than a milk 
fed fryer and a corn fed broiler, or ordinarry broiler, one kill- 
ed as brought in by the raiser, will bring 4 or 5 cents more per 
pound than a milk fed fryer. If a bird weighing i^ pounds 
or over is milk fed and does well it is apt to weigh over two 
and a half pounds when finished and thus will be a fryer or 
of undesirable size, and will sell for a lower price per pound, 
even though of improved quality. The gain in weight will 



12 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

not compensate for the loss in price. The most profitable 
sized bird to feed is one that will weigh when finished above 4 
pounds. Any spring chicken weighing 4 pounds or over is 
called a Roaster. A Roaster always brings several cents 
more per pound than a Fryer. It is therefore of advantage to 
feed a Fryer into a Roaster thus obtaining three gains, in 
weight, in quality and in price. 

The chickens on feed should be watched carefully. Many 
Packers dress immediately any bird that shows signs of being 
"off its feed." It does not pay to bother trying to cure a sick 
chicken. 

Milk fed chickens are more difficult to dress than ordi- 
nary corn fed stock. This method of feeding starts a new set 
of pin feathers which are short, and delay the work of the 
picker. If work is piece work, the picker will demand a high- 
er price per bird. The bones of a milk fed chicken are very 
weak and brittle and often in killing and dressing when the 
bird flops its wings they are broken and this disfigures the 
finished bird. 

CHAPTER IV. 
Dressing. 

Chickens and turkeys are dressed using two different 
methods, scalding and dry picking. Ducks and geese are 
either scalded or steamed. 

Scalding. 

Considerable poultry is scalded for Eastern markets 
early in the season in Michigan, Indiana and Illinois, but little 
west of the Mississippi River. Most of the scalded poultry 
is packed in ice and must reach the market promptly, as it 
will not keep when ice packed as long as does dry picked stock. 

Scalded stock is rarely dry packed, excepting broilers, 
which are prepared for freezing early in the season. There are 
few expert "scald" men in the West, and outside of some large 
plants, most of the "scald" work is poorly done. In some 
plants the birds are "roughed" dry before scalding in order 
to save the feathers. In this case they are bled in the same 
manner as if they were to be entirely dry picked, which meth- 
od is described later. 

If none of the feathers are to be saved, the bird is bled by 
severing both jugular veins and at the same time breaking the 
neck. The birds should be well bled and the "scalder" should 
wait until the birds have stopped moving before dipping in the 
hot water. The bird is dipped several times in scalding water 
kept just at the boiling point. Experience will determine the 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 13 

correct time of holding in the water. The head should be kept 
out of the hot water. Dipping the head gives the bird a sickly- 
appearance. If you intend to scald to any extent, employ an 
experienced man. An expert works on a table, others hook up 
the birds or work on a string. The feathers are removed as 
rapidly as possible without breaking or marring the skin,, and 
if the stock is to be dry packed it should be handled with ex- 
treme care in this respect. To do good work on the wings and 
legs is especially difficult. 

After all the feathers are removed, the bird should be 
"plumped" by dipping several times in hot water and then in 
cold. If the stock is to be ice packed, it should first lie in 
water at the temperature that it comes from the well or hy- 
drant. The animal heat is drawn out in this manner better 
than if placed at once in ice water. It should be held in ice 
water until the time to ship, though if it is to be held any 
length of time it should be repacked in cracked ice without 
water. To pack for shipment use barrels and plenty of crack- 
ed ice, a layer of ice then one of chickens until the barrel is 
filled. If the poultry is to be shipped any distance a "header" 
of ice should be placed on top of the last layer and the top of 
the barrel should be covered with burlap securely fastened 
over the header, using the top hoop. A header is a piece of ice 
about a foot square, larger or smaller, depending upon the 
season of the year and the distance to be shipped. 

If the poultry is to be dry packed, it should be cooled dry 
the same as dry picked stock, as will be described later, and 
should be graded and packed in the same style. 

It is cheaper to scald poultry than to dry pick it, but on 
most markets it does not bring as good a price and it is more 
difficult to place or sell it to advantage. 

Old roosters are quite frequentlyscalded, as they sell 
nearly as readily dressed in that way as they do when dry 
picked. Most turkeys in the West are dry picked. Eastern 
turkeys are quite generally scalded. 

CHAPTER V. 
Dry Picking. 

The standard method of dressing poultry for the Eastern 
markets is plucking the bird immediately after sticking. The 
bird is plucked dry. This method is called dry picking. 

There are two methods of dry picking: String picking, 
when the bird is hung by its feet on a stout cord, and chute 
or bench picking. On the average, chute or bench pickers do 
the best work, though some string pickers do equally as good 



14 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

work. Chute pickers save more feathers. In chute or bench 
picking, the bird is fastened to a slanting table-like bench by 
hooking through the upper bill. This bench slants away 
from the picker and is about i8 or 20 inches wide and about 
waist high. The head of the bird is away from the picker and 
the blood passes through a hole in the bench into a pail or 
other receptacle. The bench is padded and covered with can- 
vas to prevent the birds from bruising themselves or marring 
their skins. The feathers are caught in a bin extending along 
in front of the pickers. 

The birds are stuck or bled in the roof of the mouth and 
should not bleed too fast. It takes practice for a picker to 
acquire the knack of sticking so that the feathers will loosen 
and be easily removed. A poor "stick" will set the feathers 
and the bird will be difficult to pick and will most likely be 
torn before it is finished. Do not sever the jugular veins in 
dry picking. The bird should be "brained," as it is called, by 
piercing the brain, either through the roof of the mouth 
or from the outside just under the eye,. An experienced picker 
knows if the bird is stuck properly by a certain quiver it gives. 

If the packer has had no experience whatsoever in dress- 
ing poultry, the services of at least one good picker should be 
secured. In fact, it will be somewhat difficult to operate with- 
out securing the services of a number of good pickers. Pick- 
ing is generally done by piece work and the amount paid 
varies in different communities, and ranges from 2 to 3c for 
chickens, and from 3 to 4c for ducks, and from 4 to 5c for 
geese and turkeys. Some operators hire roughers by the day 
and these stick and take off the large bulk of body feathers, 
which is easily and quickly done, and the birds are finished 
by pinners, who finish the legs, neck and wings and remove 
the body pin feathers. The pinners are generally paid by the 
piece. Some houses turn the picking over to expert pickers 
to be done by piece work and allow these pickers to employ 
and pay their own pinners, and hold the pickers responsible 
for the quality of work done by their pinners. In this way 
when there are a large number of birds to be dressed, each 
picker employs as many pinners as he can get and when busi- 
ness is dull the pinners are laid off. This is quite a successful 
plan to use and generally results in good work being done. 
Essential requirements. 

Insist on the following: (i) All birds should be well 
bled. Note carefully the hips of the hens. Red hips denote 
poor sticking. A good picker will not turn out birds with red 
hips. (2) Do not allow your pickers to turn out torn birds 
or birds with barked up skins. If the picker should receive 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 15 



no pay for the bird he tears, it would cover but 20 per cent of 
the loss to the packer, because the torn bird must be placed 
in a lower grade and sell at a lower price. (3) See that the 
feathers on the neck are picked well^up to the base of the 
skull or to the ear openings, also see that the "garters" are 
picked off. In many small establishments the pickers follow 
a poor practice of leaving birds with garters — a ring of feathers 
above the joint between the shank and drum stick. See 
Center Bird of Illustration 2. 

After the bird is dressed, the feet and head shoud be wash- 
ed, using a stiff brush, and the vent shoud be well squeezed to 
remove any dung. If this is not done, the chicken will likely 
develop a green butt. 

CHAPTER VI. 
Dressing Ducks and Geese. 

Ducks and geese can be dressed by two methods. They 
should either be bled, cutting the jugular veins, the wing and 
tail feathers plucked, and then steamed, or they should be 
stuck to loosen the feathers and roughed, that is, most of the 
body feathers are taken off and then powdered rosin is well 
rubbed into the down and remaining feathers and the bird 
scalded. This will not only loosen the feathers but it will also 
matt them together and they are much more easily removed 
than when scalded without the rosin. This method is gener- 
ally known as "rosining," but steaming is advised because it 
saves more feathers, is quicker, and turns out equally as good 
finished birds. 

In steaming, care should be exercised to have dry hot 
steam. Steam conducted from a distance condenses consider- 
ably before reaching the steamer and being wet it is likely to 
burn the duck and cause an unsightly scalded or burned look. 
When steam is conducted any distance, each time it is to be 
turned on for a batch, it should be shunted or turned off into a 
waste pipe for a moment to get rid of the accumulated conden- 
sation and then turned into the steamer. A method that is ad- 
vised when steam has to be conducted from a distance, as is 
often the case in many large plants, is to conduct the steam in- 
to the steaming compartment through a drying chamber be- 
low. If the steam is run into this and permitted to pass up 
through various openings into the steaming chamber proper, 
it will be found that the steam is quite dry and that good work 
will result. 

The most satisfactory work, however, is done when the 
steam is made close at hand. Use for this purpose a small 
steam feed cooking boiler and conduct the steam through the 



i6 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

shortest possible pipe to the steaming chest. The most eco- 
nomical chest and at the same time a good one can be made 
by using a vinegar barrel and fastening a tight cover over 
half the top, the remainder of the top being hinged. Three 
or four grooves can be cut into the solid cover to be used to 
hang the birds by the neck when steaming, or hooks can be 
provided for the same purpose. Some small packers use a 
gasoline stove of two burners or a coal fire in a flat topped 
laundry stove and use an ordinary wash boiler with a tight 
cover. About three inches of water is used and a wooden slat- 
ted platform is supported about six or eight inches from the 
bottom. Place one duck at a time on same, steaming i>4 
minutes, breast down ; i minute, back down. Special care 
shoud be taken to prevent the head from hanging down in the 
water. 

CHAPTER VII. 

Dressing, Continued, 

Capons, Guineas, Squabs and Pigeons. 

Capons should be dressed capon style. By this is meant 
the style that has become standard and which requires that 
the feathers be allowed to remain on a considerable portion of 
the bird. Leave the feathers on the upper half of the neck. 
Pick the breast clean, pick around the vent and up to the 
large tail feathers. Pick the entire under side of the wing, all 
three joints ; pick the upper part of the first joint next to the 
body. Leave the feathers on the upper part of the last two 
joints including the long wing feathers or flights. Leave the 
saddle feathers on the back to within 2^^ or 3 inches of the 
tail. See Illustration 3. 

Some large capon packers vary the above style by picking 
the leg or drumstick clean and removing all, or nearly all, of 
the saddle feathers. Also leaving all the feathers on both sides 
of the two outside joints of the wings. 

Sometimes heavy springs or even heavy hens are dressed 
capon style and sell readily. At other times the feathers will 
have to be plucked by the receiver in order to find a sale for 
same. If you can find an outlet, pick some in this manner; 
otherwise, don't risk it. 

Guineas. 

Guineas are very easily prepared for market. All that is 
necessary to do is to break the neck and allow them to cool 
over night before packing. Do not pluck the feathers. In 
killing, the skin should not be broken, as this would spoil the 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 17 

appearance of the bird. It is generally well to throw them in 
a barrel or large box until they are quiet, then place on shelves 
or racks with the head hanging down to allow the blood to 
gather in the neck. 

Squabs should be bled and dry picked and the work 
should be done very carefully. 

Pigeons are killed by breaking the necks, the birds allow- 
ed to cool and packed with the feathers on. If the neck is 
properly broken, no blood will appear on the outside of the 
bird. 

Feathers. 

All body feathers should be saved and the wing and tail 
feathers of all but hens, ducks and geese. Save from each 
kind of poultry separately. As the white feathers are much 
more valuable, they should be kept from the colored. Be 
sure to save the rooster tail feathers; save the whole "grab," 
that is, the whole handful as the picker removes the tail. Wing 
and tail feathers may be sacked at once, but it is well to place 
the body feathers in bins if the room can be obtained and stir 
well with a large fork every few days to keep from matting. 
You will find a ready market for all prime, properly cared 
for feathers. 

All duck and geese body feathers should be carefully 
saved, each kind separate, as they bring a big price, and the 
white of each kind by themselves, as they are more valuable 
than the colored. If the feathers from steamed ducks or 
geese are thoroughly forked every day, they will dry out and 
become prime and are equally as good and sell for the same 
as what are known as live duck or geese feathers. The geese 
feathers will bring more money per pound than the duck. 
If duck and geese feathers are carefully handled, they will pay 
for the cost of dressing. 

CHAPTER IX. 
Cooling. 

If this hand book had been written ten or fifteen years 
ago, it would have been proper to have devoted this chapter 
to drawing, as removing the entrails would have been at that 
time the next step in preparing the poultry for market. 

Up to within a few years some markets required that the 
poultry be drawn before it was packed. Likewise in the im- 
mediate past, especially at the time of the pure food agitation, 
there was some prejudice and considerable agitation against 
undrawn poultry being marketed or put in the freezer. This 
prejudice has been demonstrated to be unfounded and the agi- 



i8 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

tation has gradually died down and at present one hears very- 
little objection to undrawn poultry. 

The standard requirement is now for undrawn poultry 
and I doubt that it ever will be changed. It would be impos- 
sible to put a good quality of poultry on the market under 
present conditions if it were necessary to draw it, as this 
would expose the inside to contamination and lessen instead 
of increasing the keeping quality. 

It is absolutely necessary that the animal heat be allowed 
to pass out of a dressed bird as soon as possible after it is 
killed. The abundant bacteria that are always present begin 
to develop very rapidly as soon as the bird is dead unless it 
is cooled. Cold retards the development of bacteria, and 
when the temperature of the bird is near freezing the develop- 
ment is very slow, and when frozen it is practically suspended. 

However, a dressed bird should not be placed at once 
where the temperature is too low, say at freezing or below, 
for in this case the bird will not cool out properly. We hear 
around poultry houses the common and paradoxical saying, 
"Cooling too quickly drives the heat in." An explanation 
that has been offered for this phenomenon, is that exposing 
the bird to quite intense cold does two things that prevent 
the radiation of the heat from the bird, or as commonly ex- 
pressed, prevent the bird from cooling: (i) hardens the 
outside of the carcass causing it to act as insulation, (2) con- 
geals the moisture near the surface and stops the flow of the 
juices of the body. The moisture or juices of the bird con- 
tinue to flow from one part of the body to another for a con- 
siderable time after the bird is killed, especially if one part 
of the body is colder than another and this affords an avenue 
for the internal animal heat to escape, but when the juices are 
congealed at the outside the flow ceases. It is certainly true 
that if the bird is placed immediately in too cold a tempera- 
ture, the heat is held within long enough to give the putrafac- 
tive bacteria a chance to develop to a sufficient extent to give 
the bird when cooked an offensive flavor. 

Of late years the larger packers have equipped their 
plants with artifcial cooling facilities and are thus in a pos- 
ition to box pack their poultry during the summer months 
as well as when the weather is cold. The rooms are held at 
from 40 degrees to 45 degrees, although some cool at 34 de- 
grees to 37 degrees. If the poultry is to reach the freezer or 
market within two or three days it can be held in a room at 
from 32 to 34 degrees, but in the Southwest, where a great deal 
of summer dressing is done, it is customary to hold it in a 
room at about 27 degrees for from 48 to 'J2 hours before ship- 




< 

CO 

:d 

-J 
-J 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 19 

ping, and thus thoroughly precooling. This will generally in- 
sure the stock reaching the market in prime condition if hand- 
led properly in transit even though it take from 7 to 9 days. 

See Chapter XVI for additional information concerning 
precooling. 

The small packer must depend upon the weather in put- 
ting up dry packed poultry. The safest way is to wait until 
the weather is thoroughly settled, which in Northern Iowa is 
by Nov. 15th, before starting to dry pack. Many, however, in 
order to get more stock put up, begin earlier, about the 
1st of November. They cool out at night and pack early in 
the morning and get the boxes into a beef iced car on their 
side track. If the weather is warm, the birds are placed in 
the car to cool, being careful to get the birds as cold as pos- 
sible before placing in the car to prevent the temperature of 
the car from rising and thus injuring tne poultry already 
packed. 

Some small packers who begin early ship each day 
to the freezer if the freezer is near at hand ; and if the poultry 
will reach it the same day as packed, shipments can be made 
by freight, but if at a distance shipments should be made by 
express. If the weather should turn warm with dressed 
poultry on hand, it is customary to cool in ice water and dry 
off as much as possible before boxing, and shipping at once to 
the freezer. Some ship in ice to the freezer, where it is graded 
and boxed by the Cold Storage Co., and a charge made only 
for the actual cost of labor and boxes. As to the desirability 
of cooling in ice water, and then freezing, there is some ques- 
tion. A great deal of poultry is handled in this manner early 
in the season, and if it is merely cooled out over night in ice 
water, then dried well and boxed and frozen immediately, 
the appearance is just as attractive as that of dry cooled stock, 
and it will thaw out in just as good condition. If poultry is 
shipped a long distance in ice, or is held in ice a considerable 
time, then taken out, box packed and frozen, it will not freeze 
with as good an appearance, nor will it thaw out in the best of 
condition. 

Cooling in ice, drying off, then boxing and freezing will 
eliminate considerable of the risk of handling stock early in 
the season, and will often save a big loss. It is not deemed 
practical to cool in ice, then dry pack, and ship to a market at 
a distance. Poultry handled in this manner should be frozen 
as soon as possible after being put in boxes. 



20 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

Cooling Equipment. 

In many large plants shelved trucks are used for holding 
the birds in cooling. The birds are laid on these in the pick- 
ing room and when filled they are run into the cooling room 
and the birds left undisturbed until graded for packing. There 
is only one objection to this plan and that is the large amount 
of space required for cooling. The plan is certainly the most 
economical of any as far as saving of labor is concerned. 

A good, practical plan is to have cooling racks with slatted 
bottoms, made to hold about two dozen birds, and made 
so one can be placed on top of the other. See Illustration 4. 
The sides are made to project about a foot beyond the 
solid ends and are used as handles for carrying or moving. 
These can be stacked one on top of the other and loaded on 
platform trucks and in the cooling room can be stacked up 
to a considerable height, using a small amount of space and 
thus increasing the cooling room capacity. See Illustrations 
5, 6 and 7. 

Fixed shelves in the cooling room are still used by some 
large packers, but this necessitates more labor, and is less 
convenient than either of the other two plans mentioned. 

Cooling Squatted Birds. 

Middle weight chickens (25^ to 4 pounds each) are quite 
generally packed squatted and it is well to squat them before 
cooling and allow them to cool in that position. In Canada 
and in some parts of this country shaping troughs are used 
with a weight for each bird. A more practical plain is to 
use slatted shelves to which are nailed for each bird squatted 
two strips i^ to 2 inches in height and about 9 inches long 
and fastened six inches apart in front and coming together 
and making an angle in the rear. Squat the bird and place 
on the shelf feet downward, spreading the feet carefully so 
that they will cool flat. The birds will be supported in this 
wedge-shaped form so as to retain the squatted position. The 
head hangs down in front. 

Often the buildings used by small packers are very badly 
overrun with rats, as they are used only a few months of 
the year and sometimes are old shacky buildings. To keep 
the poultry from becoming rat eaten at night, some hang it 
by the feet from cords dropped from the ceiling, but this is 
not desirable because it causes the bird to cool in a position 
that makes it appear long and thin. 

Often cooling racks are placed with a milk can under 
either end of the stack and this has been found to be an in- 
expensive and handy arrangement. See Ilustrations 6 and 7. 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 2i 

CHAPTER X. 
Standard Grading and Packing. 

All poultry should be put up in attractive style sanc- 
tioned by custom. It should be selected for quality, assorted 
for size, and packed in approved style in new boxes of proper 
size and suitable material, holding twelve birds each. These 
are essential requirements of what we shall designate as 
Standard Packed Poultry. 

It is still possible to sell poultry to fair advantage, at 
times, packed in barrels, and in odd shaped second hand boxes, 
with little or no grading, or assorting. But each year it be- 
comes increasingly difficult to do so, and this method of put- 
ting up poultry for market is rapidly being discontinued. 

Whether it is sold immediately, or if it is frozen for a 
later market, it will bring a higher price if closely assorted and 
packed a dozen in a box, as the butcher or shop-keeper at 
all times prefers a small box of one kind of poultry, each 
bird of the same quality and of uniform size and weight, to 
any other package. He can buy just what he requires of each 
kind and size, and does not need to buy any stock for which 
he has little or no sale, as he would frequently have to do in 
buying barrel packed stock. Likewise, on a slow market, the 
speculator will buy box packed poultry when he would not 
look at barrel packed stock. It rarely, if ever, pays to freeze 
barrel packed poultry, especially if it be spring chickens or 
fowl. (Dressed hens are commonly called fowl.) 

This chapter, and the following four chapters, are de- 
voted to grading and packing. As the two processes are so 
closely interwoven, and as they are done at the same time, 
they are discussed under the same heading. 

Grading or determining quality is outlined in this chapter; 
the sizes or weights into which poultry is assorted are enum- 
erated in Chapter XI; packing is discussed in two chapters; 
in Chapter XII the styles of packing are defined; in Chapter 
XIII, boxes and boxing are described and specifications given. 
In Chapter XIV, the information given in Chapters X to XIII 
inclusive, is summarized and tabulated and additional neces- 
sary information given. 

Quality. 

The determining of the quality, the assorting as to size, 
the style of packing and the appearance and shape of the 
boxes used, are approaching a uniform standard. Each year 
a larger proportion of the poultry marketed by different pack- 
ers is of the same general style and quality and thus Standard 



22 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

Packing is constantly becoming more fixed. In this hand 
book nothing is described as standard, but what has been 
tried out by the largest packers, or approved on the great mar- 
kets. 

While the writer has exercised his judgment in selecting 
the information given, it has been his aim to aid in furthering 
any work previously done towards standardizing poultry 
grading and packing. Acting with this purpose, many of the 
class numbers given in Chapter XIV are the ones recommend- 
ed in an article that appeared in a leading publication in the 
fall of 1908, and since used by a number of packers. 

Grading and packing should be done as soon as the birds 
are properly cooled. In practice the birds are dressed one day, 
cooled over night and packed the next morning, or as soon as 
possible after that. No birds should be packed the same day 
that they are killed. If the birds are picked or dressed properly 
before they are cooled, the work of an expert grader is simple, 
but requiring good judgment, and the more experience he has 
had the better he will do. The grader examines each bird 
carefully. If it is not dressed properly, but if the quality is 
unimpaired, he first remedies the defects. Most of the defect- 
ively dressed birds are found in the stock that is prepared in 
the country, and shipped to the central grading plant, although 
at times poor dressing is done at the central plant. 

There are five most common defects in birds that come to 
the grader: Birds not picked clean, too many feathers 
are left on the neck, a garter or ring of feathers around the 
joint between the shank and "drum stick" is left, and the 
wings are not picked clean. See middle bird in Illus- 
tration 2. At times the whole body of the bird must 
be gone over to remove feathers or pin feathers. If 
poultry is very poorly dressed, it should either not be purchas- 
ed or a deduction in price to cover the cost of labor and ex- 
pense of finishing the birds should be charged to the shipper. 

(2) Birds often reach the grader with some food remain- 
ing in the crop ; this should be removed. 

(3) If any dung remains in the -vent it should be squeez- 
ed out. 

(4) If the heads are bloody and the feet dirty they should 
be washed. 

(5) If the birds arrive sweaty or damp, they should be 
racked up in the cooling room to dry. 

In grading, a bench with from four to ten or even more 
compartments may be used to good advantage. Some de- 
termine the size of the bird by weighing it on a small plat- 
form spring scale. See Illustration 7. An experienced grader 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 32 

knows at a glance the quality of the bird, and the weight, as 
soon as he picks it up, and only uses the scale occasionally, 
while a grader with little experience will weigh nearly every 
bird. However, if a man knows poultry as to quality, you will 
take no risk if he has to weigh many birds in assorting for 
size and weight. Some graders assemble twelve fancy quality 
birds of the same size, weigh them and thus determine the 
class they are in, choose the proper size box and pack them. 

Fancy Poultry. 

Only the best quality of poultry should be put into the 
fancy grades ; do not include torn, pinny or hump backed 
birds. Remember that the consumer really does the grading, 
and if a box should contain a bird that is off in quality, 
you are likely to suffer for it, as the buyer has to sell the stock 
to the consumer and he knows what the consumer demands ; 
and consequently will reject a line of poultry not properly 
graded as to quality. 

X. X. or No. 2 Poultry. 

Include all birds that are a reasonably good No. 2 grade, 
including all hump backed, deformed, pinny and torn birds, 
but do not include any strictly cull (canning stock) birds. 

Choice Poultry. 

At times there is a considerable amount of poultry of a 
quality not sufficiently fine to be packed with the fancy, and 
yet too good to go in as X. X. or No. 2. This will be found 
especially in ducks and turkeys. Some packers select this out 
and pack it separately, and quite frequently stencil same as. 
"Choice," to distinguish it from "Fancy," and also give it a 
different class number. 

X. X. X. Poultry. 

Strictly cull or canning stock are frequently called X.X.X. 
grade or "canners." These are chickens taken from the var- 
ious classes of broilers, fryers, roasters and fowl, and are not 
good enough to go into the X.X. or No. 2 grade. They should 
not contain ducks, geese or turkeys, and are generally packed 
in barrels. 

Stags. 

Your grader should take exceptional care to sort out all 
the stags from your Fryers and Roasters. By Stags is 
meant all chickens that have a dark or bluish or hard meated 
appearance and that will freeze very dark. 



24 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

A large spur is erroneously taken to indicate that 
a bird is staggy. You will very often find that staggy, hard 
meated chickens do not show large spurs, and you will also 
find, especially as the season advances, quite a number of 
chickens that show large spurs that are not coarse, blue or 
hard meated. If the Chicken is nice, bright, soft meated and 
shows medium large spurs, continue to pack it with your 
Roasters, but if it is a dark, blue Chicken and does not show 
large spurs, then pack it with your stag Roasters. 

Head Wraps. 

The heads of all classes of standard packed birds should 
be wrapped. The only exception is the squatted or export 
packed birds. The heads of these are now generally left un- 
wrapped. 

Either 3ott) parchment paper or grease proof imitation 
parchment can be used. Some of the smaller packers use 
sacks, which are not desirable. Sheets 8 by ii inches have 
been used much in the past, and also smaller and square sheets. 
These are wrapped and twisted on with an attempt to get 
the birds into the box without the heads becoming unwrapped, 
but it is very dificult to do this with any degree of success 
and without considerable bother. 

Improved Head Wraps. 

The most attractive and practical head wrap is one made 
from a sheet of paper cut as follows : Use 24x32 size sheets 
of parchment paper. Cut in strips 24 inches long and from 
6>4 to 7^ inches wide. Fold the strips once so that they will 
be in the form of a try square, each arm of the square of equal 
length. Cut along the fold and you will have from each strip 
two sheets of the same size and shape with four sides, and 
with two corners at an angle of 90 degrees each and one 
corner at an angle of 45 degrees, and the remaining at an 
angle of 135 degrees. The sheets of paper will be the width 
of the original strip but one side will be considerably longer 
than the opposite. 

Directions for Putting on the Special Head Wrap. 

Grasp the head of the bird with the left hand. Lay the 
square end of the wrap on top of the neck with about an inch 
margin to the left of the neck and at an angle of about 100 
degrees with the neck. The longest dimension of the paper 
should be toward the body of the bird. Grasp the paper with 
the right hand and wrap around the neck ; when wrapped cor- 
rectly the bird's head will lie in an open funnel or cone with 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 25 

the neck in and passing through the apex or narrowest end. 
Now tuck over the edges all around and continue until all 
the slack is taken up to the bill and head of the bird. This 
tucking in of the edges will bind the paper on so that it will be 
impossible to remove or pull the wrap off without tearing 
same. See Illustrations 5, 6, and 7. 

The publishers enclose with each hand book a specimen 
sheet or head wrap, which should be retained as a pattern. 
Also see Illustration No. 5 to gain an idea of how to use 
this wrap. Additional sheets will be mailed by publishers on 
receipt of a two cent stamp to pay return postage. For ducks, 
geese, turkeys and old roosters larger or wider sheets should 
be cut, but of the same shape. 

CHAPTER XL 
Classification. 

-V 

Standard Packed Poultry should be assorted very closely 
as to size or weight. 

Classes of Spring Chickens. 

Spring Chickens are first divided into three general class- 
es, Broilers, birds under 23^ pounds each; middle weight 
chickens, birds weighing from 2^ to 33^ or sometimes up to 
4 pounds each ; and roasting chickens, weighing 4 pounds each 
and up. Sometimes birds weighing 3^^ to 4 pounds each are 
classed as roasting chickens. 

Three classes of fancy broilers are made with an average 
difference of Y^ pound per bird between the classes, (i). i^ 
pounds each and under. (2), i^ to 2 pounds each. 
(3). 2 to 2^ pounds each. 

Middle weight chickens are divided commonly into three 
classes with an average difference of ^ pound per bird be- 
tween the classes, (i). 2^ to 3 pounds each. (2). 3 to 
3>4 pounds each. (3). 3^ to 4 pounds each. 

Some packers, especially when squat packing, assort their 
middle weights into classes with only an average difference 
of about 1-3 pound per bird between classes, thus making 
five instead of three, (i). 29 to 31 pounds per doz. (2). 32 
to 35 pounds per doz. (3). 36 to 39 pounds per doz. (4). 40 
to 43 pounds per doz. (5). 44 to *7 pounds per doz. 

Assorting this closely for weight is done because in Eng- 
land chickens are sold by the pair and the shop keeper de- 
sires to buy stock each box holding birds of apparently the 
same size. 

When middle weight chickens are put up by small pack- 



26 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

ers, especially if not squatted, it is recommended to class to- 
gether all chickens weighing from 2^ to 3^ pounds, packing 
a double layer box, roaster style. 

When the two grades, 2^2 to 3 pounds each and 3 to 3^, 
are packed single layer, broiler style, the 3^4 to 4 pound grade 
is packed roaster style and called a light roaster. 

Roasting chickens above 4 pounds each are divided into 
two classes, roasters weighing 4 to 5 pounds each, and heavy 
roasters, weighing 5 pounds each and up. 

Classes of Fowls. 

Dressed hens are called fowls. No. i or fancy fowls are 
assorted into five classes by many of the larger packers and 
by some into six classes, and should not be divided into less 
than three classes. 

The five classes are: (i). Under 35 pounds per doz. 
(2). 36 to 42 pounds per doz. (3). 43 to 48 pounds per doz. 
(4). 49 to 59 pounds per doz. (5). 60 pounds and up. If 
the sixth class is added, make it "^2 pounds up. 

When three classes are made, they should be assorted as 
follows: (i). 38 pounds per doz. and under. (2). 39 to 
53 pounds per doz. (3). 54 pounds up; and if a fourth is 
added, 66 pounds per doz up. 

Old roosters are not commonly assorted as to quality or 
weight. 

Classes of Turkeys. 

Turkeys are commonly divided into three classes ; Hen 
turkey, young and old, mixed ; young Tom turkeys ; and old 
Toms. It is desirable to pack 12 birds in a box, but in order 
to fill the boxes properly it is sometimes necessary to put in 
more or less than 12. Sometimes if the old hen turkeys are 
heavy or very coarse, they are selected out and packed separ- 
ately from the young ones. 

When a great many turkeys are graded it is desirable to 
divide the hen turkeys into two classes, above 8 and under 8 
pounds each. Likewise the young toms into two classes, 
above 14 pounds and under 14 pounds each. 

Classes of Ducks. 

Fancy Ducks are divided into two classes: (i). Those 
weighing 53 pounds and under per doz., and (2) Those 
weighing 54 pounds or over per doz. The young ducks are 
sometimes assorted out and packed separately, but this is not 
commonly done. 




z 

O 

< 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 27 

Geese. 

Fancy geese are divided into two classes: (i). Under 
10 pounds each. (2). Over 10 pounds each. 

Guineas. 
If guineas are divided at all, they are not divided as to 
weight. Of late it has been the practice to assort the old from 
the young and pack separately. 

Squabs. 

Are sometimes divided into four classes: (i). 7 to 8 
pounds per dozen. (2), 8 to 9 pounds per doz. (3). 9 to 
10 pounds per doz. (4). 10 pounds per doz. up. 

Pigeons are not graded as to size. 

Capons. 

Capons are divided into the following classes : (i). Un- 
der 6 pounds each. (2). 6 to 7 pounds each. (3). Above 
7 pounds. The slips are packed separately. 

CHAPTER XII. 
Style of Packing. 

There are four styles of packing generally used, each of 
which has one or more variations ; and two styles not so com- 
monly used. 

The four principal styles being the Broiler or Single Layer 
Domestic Style ; the Squatted, or Single Layer Export Style ; 
the Roaster, or Double Layer Domestic Style; and the Duck 
Style. The two styles not so commonly used are the Capon 
Style and the Single Layer Roaster Style. 

The Broiler or Single Layer Domestic Style. 

This is the way in which the majority of spring chickens 
under 2^/2 pounds are packed. 

Standard Broiler Style (A). 

Wrap heads; line boxes with parchment paper; feet clean; 
shank feathers, if any, picked off. 

Pack one dozen birds to the box. The birds should all 
be practically of the same size, not differing over J^ pound in 
weight. Pack six birds on each side of the box with feet ex- 
tended past the center of the box; breasts up; heads and feet 
hidden; head packed in under and to the side of the bird it 
belongs to, and the feet crossed with those of opposite bird 
and tucked in under opposite bird. Be careful not to draw 
out the legs too far so that the bird will lose its plump appear- 
ance. See Illustration i. Box 21. 



28 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

Variation i-(B) — The packing is the same with the ex- 
ception that the legs are not buried, but are extended crossed 
with those of the bird opposite at the top of the box. When 
broilers are packed this way, they sometimes are graded as to 
color of shank, the yelow and dark shanked birds being pack- 
ed separately. 

Variation 2-(C) — Same as in Variation i-(B) excepting that 
the box is packed upside down and consequently the legs of 
the birds on one side are not crossed with those of the other. 
This is a very rapid way to pack the Broiler Style, but is not 
quite as attractive in appearance as the regular Broiler Style 
of Variation i-(B). 

The box is stenciled upside down so that it will be open- 
ed on opposite side to that packed. 

Variation 3-(D) — Each bird is wrapped in parchment 
paper and packed breast up .without crossing legs. This style 
was formerly used extensively in packing fancy broilers, but 
is now only used in packing No. 2 stock. 

The Squatted or Single Layer Export Style. 

This is the style in which a great many of the middle 
weight chickens, 2^ to 3^ and sometimes up to 4 pounds 
each, are packed. These are the weights or sizes of springs 
most difficult to sell on the domestic markets, and it is ad- 
vantageous to have them packed in the English style, and thus 
they are in a condition most attractive to be exported and are 
at times in reasonably strong demand by exporters. Also 
light weight hens, if fat and smooth, sell well packed in this 
style. 

In order to make the package the most attractive, the 
birds of these weights (2^ to 4 pounds) should be squatted 
while warm. (See Chapter IX.) 

Standard Export Style (E). 

Pack in single layer boxes. Boxes lined with parchment 
paper. Heads not wrapped; birds not wrapped. 

This style should be used when the birds are cooled squat- 
ted. Pack six birds breasts up ; six birds backs up ; heads and 
feets clean ; heads brought forward and turned sideways so 
that eyes show. A box packed in this style has the same ap- 
pearance on both top and bottom. 

Birds put up in this way will often sell readily when birds 
packed otherwise, even though squatted, will not attract more 
than a glance. 

Variation i-(F) — Same as the above, excepting that all 
twelve birds are packed heads up and the heads all appear on 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 29 

the top of the box. Heads all turned sideways so eyes will 
show. 

It is difficult to pack birds in the Regular or Squatted 
Method (E) unless they have been cooled in the squatted posi- 
tion, and therefore Variation i or (F) is recommended for the 
packers who receive a part of their stock dressed and cooled. 
It takes some practice to pack birds squatted, squatting them 
after they are cold. If the middle toe is bent back until the 
tendon snaps, it will be found that the bird can be more easily 
Squatted and packed. 

Variation 2-(G) — Same as Variation i or (F) excepting 
that the heads are wrapped. See box on extreme left of Illus- 
tration I, marked 19. 

The Roaster or Double Layer Domestic Style. 

This is the style in which practically all of the roasters 
and medium or heavy fowl and also turkeys are packed. Some 
middle weight chickens are packed in this manner, but it is 
recommended only to the smaller packers, who get few, to be 
used on the middle weight classes. Some packers pack their 
capons in this style. 

Standard Roasting Style (H). 

Boxes lined with parchment paper. Heads wrapped. 
Parchment paper between layers. Pack twelve birds to the 
box in two layers. Bottom layer heads and feet up ; top layer 
heads and feet down ; both layers packed on sides and butts 
locked. To accomplish this, three birds packed breasts one 
way, three birds breasts the opposite way. See Ilustration i, 
Box 34. 

Variation i-(I) — Packed the same as the Standard Meth- 
od, but on the top layer the upper leg of each bird is not pack- 
ed under or hidden, but brought forward and extended straight 
to show color of shank. Only yellow shanked birds and birds 
with shanks free from feathers should be packed in this man- 
ner. The dark shanked birds should be packed in the bottom 
layer, and if in the top layer the shank should be hidden or 
dropped under opposite bird. 

Variation 2-(J) — Same as the Standard Method only the 
birds are each wrapped in a suitable sized sheet of parchment 
paper before packing and it is not necessary to wrap heads or 
line boxes. Some packers have put up in the past some of 
their fanciest birds in this way. Others use this variation in 
packing their No. 2 stock. 

The Single Layer Roaster Style. (K). 
This can be used when putting up some very fine stock 



30 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



for a particular customer. 

Pack in single layer boxes in the same mannef as the up- 
per layer of the Double Layer Roaster Style is packed. See 
Illustration 8. 

Variation i-(L) — Pack with upper leg exposed, same as 
in upper layer of Variation i-(I) of the Double Layer Style. 

Capon Style (M). 

Pack in two layers in a deep box, twelve to the box. 
Line box. Wrap heads. Parchment paper between layers. 
Lower layer, breasts down, heads and feet up; upper layer, 
breasts up, head and feet down, legs crossed with those of 
opposite bird and feet buried. 

This is the most approved method of packing capons. 
Sometimes roasting chickens and heavy fowl are packed in 
this manner, if of an especially fine quality. 

Standard Duck Style (N). 

Ducks and geese are packed in this manner. Pack in two 
layers, twelve to the box; line boxes with parchment paper; 
wrap heads ; sheet of parchment paper between the layers ; 
lower layer, breasts down, feet and heads up ; upper layer, 
breasts up, heads and feet down ; both layers packed butt to 
butt. See Ilustration 7, Box 75. 

Variation i-(0) — Same as Standard Method only butts 
are lapped. 

Variation 2-(P) — Same as Variation i-(0) excepting that 
birds are wrapped separately in parchment paper. When 
birds are wrapped it is not necessary to wrap heads or line 
boxes. 

CHAPTER XIIL 
Boxes and Boxing. 

Poultry boxes are not bought made up, but the lumber 
comes K. D., which means knocked down. This lumber is 
sawed to the exact size, so that when nailed up it will make a 
box of the size specified. The lumber comes in bundles of 25 
parts each, the sides in one bundle, the ends in another, and 
the tops and bottoms in a third. The lumber for some of the 
larger sized boxes sometimes comes twenty parts to the bun- 
dle. If the bundles come twenty-five to bundle, two bundles 
of each kind or six bundles in all will make twenty-five boxes. 
The bundles of lumber as they are shipped are called box 
shooks. 

Special cement coated 5d or 6d box nails are used in 
making up the boxes. 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 31 

If the poultry is to be marketed immediately, pine boxes 
can be used to good advantage and are cheaper, but if the 
poultry is to be frozen and stored, use whitewood or cotton- 
wood boxes. A prejudice exists against using pine boxes in 
which to pack poultry for freezing, as some buyers think that 
pine wood affects the taste. If the shooks are bought in car 
loads, the freight rate is low, and generally K. D. boxes can be 
bought in car loads delivered at the same price as small ship- 
ments are furnished at the mill. The small packer will find 
it difficult to buy whitevv'ood lumber at a reasonable price in 
small lots, and if it is necessary for him to use basswood, he 
should insist that same be furnished free from dark colored 
wood so that it will nail up as an attractive box. Basswood 
shooks are low priced, and if they do not contain dark wood 
they can be used. 

Formerly all poultry was packed in large boxes or barrels. 
Later small' •" ^s held':'':?- i-:: s (■-^.:'\ cr \r -'e v. ■? used. At 
presev;; ' ' ' ' ..he best 

advai h the 

excev '. ys, 

shouid be paLi. jU ^iie ci---:-ii to inc i:^::. L Jcen 

not to put the bi¥ds inlv^ the boxes- t'oo^ lo lon't 

use too large a box. It is better td crow ' the 

boxes, for when they fit snugly and fh^ t they 

look plumper and meatier than the birds put irto the boxes 
loosely. 

Box Specifications. 

In different parts of the c-.r'-trv. +be boxe^ used for pack- 
ing various classes of poultry,- and shape. 
This is caused by the average i; | : . - How- 
ever, practically the same size and slia'pe : c used 
in one locality as well as in another. The spccilica.ions here- 
with given have been tried out by a number of packers and 
have generally been found satisfactory for Io,va and Illinois 
raised poultry. 

Box No. I— 16x15x33^ inside. This is the standard broil- 
er box and will hold twelve broilers, twenty-four pounds and 
under per dozen. 

_ Box No. lA — 15x14x4 inside. This is the Missouri style. 
This can be used when broilers are more framey, that is, no^ 
so plump. 

Box No. 5 — 17x16x4 inside. This is the standard heavv 
broiler box and will hold twelve broilers, twenty-five to thirtv 
pounds per dozen. 



32 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

Box No. 5A — 16x15x4^ inside. This is the Missouri style 
broiler box. 

Box No. 5B — i6>4xi5i^x4>^. This is a box used for 
heavy broilers by some packers, especially when they run 
close to thirty pounds per dozen. 

Box No. 10 — 21x15x3^ inside. This box will hold twelve 
export, squat-packed chickens weighing from thirty to thirty- 
five pounds per dozen. Will also hold twelve export, squat- 
packed fowl, weighing under thirty-eight pounds per dozen. 

Box No. 15 — 23x15^4x4 inside. This box will hold twelve 
export, squat-packed chickens, thirty-six to forty-two pounds 
to the dozen. Will also hold twelve squatted fowl, thirty-six 
to forty-eight pounds per dozen. 

Box No. 20 — 24x16x434 inside. This box will hold twelve 
export, squat-packed chickens, forty-two to forty-seven pounds 
to the dozen. If desired, it will also hold twelve squat-packed 
fowl, weighing fifty-four to sixty pounds per dozen. 

Box No. 21 — 25x17x4^ inside. This box will hold twelve 
export, squat-packed chickens, weighing forty-five to fifty 
pounds per dozen. Also can be used for squat-packed heavy 
hens weighing about sixty pounds to the dozen. 

Box No. 25 — 18x17x4 inside. This box will hold twelve 
domestic packed chickens, packed broiler style, weighing from 
thirty to thirty-five pounds per dozen. 

Box No. 25A — 17x16x5 inside. This is Missouri style 
box, and is used when the chickens are more framey. 

Box No. 26 — 195^x18x4^ inside. This box is to hold 
twelve domestic packed chickens, packed broiler style, packed 
thirty-two to forty-two pounds per dozen. 

Box No. 27 — 21x19x4^ inside. This can be used if de- 
sired in packing domestic broiler style chickens weighing 
forty-three to forty-seven pounds to the dozen. 

Box No. 30 — 19x16x8 inside. This box to contain twelve 
roasters, forty-eight to fifty-nine pounds per dozen; also 
twelve fowl, weighing fifty-four pounds and up per dozen ; also 
twelve ducks weighing fifty-three pounds and under per dozen. 

Box No. 30A — i8>^xi6x7^ inside. This is a Missouri 
style box, and is useful when roasting chickens do not average 
over fifty pounds per dozen. 

Box No. 35— 2oxi6>^x8>^ inside. This box to hold twelve 
roasting chickens sixty pounds and up per dozen. It can also 
be used for very heavy fowl weighing about seventy pounds 
per dozen. Also for capons under 6 pounds each. 

Box No. 36—18x17x9 inside. This is used for heavy fowl 
weighing sixty pounds and up, and is more desirable for this 
purpose than box No. 35 as it is shorter and deeper. 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 33 

Box No. 37 — 21x175^x9. This is a box that is rarely used 
and can be used for holding twelve old cox, weighing seventy- 
two pounds a dozen and up. Can also be used for capons, 
packed roaster style weighing 6 to 7 pounds each. 

Box No. 40 — 14x125^x7 inside. This is an ideal fowl box 
and will hold twelve fowl weighing thirty-eight pounds and 
under per dozen. Could be used for twelve roaster style pack- 
ed middleweight chickens weighing from thirty to thirty-six 
pounds per dozen. 

Box No. 41 — 15^x14x6^^ inside. This box will hole? 
twelve double layer roaster packed chickens weighing thirty to 
forty pounds per dozen. It is the ideal box to use in packing 
middleweight chickens roaster style. It can also be used for 
packing twelve fowl weighing thirty-eight pounds to the doz- 
en. 

Box No. 45 — 16x15x75^ inside. This box holds twelve 
fowl, thirty-nine to forty-three pounds per dozen ; also holds 
twelve Double Layer Roaster style packed chickens, weighing 
forty-three to forty-eight pounds per dozen. This is an ideal 
fowl box. No. 46 is better for chickens. 

Box No. 46 — 17^x15x7 inside. This box will hold twelve 
Double Layer Roaster style packed chickens, weighing forty- 
three to forty-eight pounds per dozen and is the ideal small 
roaster box, and is used for that purpose universally. It will 
also hold to quite good advantage, twelve fowl weighing up 
to fifty-three pounds per dozen. 

Box No. 47 — 20x14x11 inside. For capons under 6 pounds 

Box No. 48 — 21x15x12 inside. For capons weighing 6 
to 7 pounds each. 

Box No. 49 — 22x16x12^ inside. For capons weighing 
over 7 pounds each. 

Box No. 50 — 24x19x11 inside. This box will hold twelve 
hen turkeys of mixed weights ; will also hold twelve geese 
weighing under ten pounds each ; will also hold eight old tom 
turkeys of small size. 

Box No, 55 — 28x22x12 inside. This box will hold twelve 
young tom turkeys, twelve geese weighing ten pounds or over 
each, and eight medium sized old tom turkeys. 

Box No. 60 — 32x24x6 inside. This box will hold from ten 
to twelve young hen turkeys weighing under eight pounds 
each, packed single layer. 

Box No. 61 — 32x24x6^^ inside. This box will hold ten to 
twelve mixed young and old hen turkeys weighing eight 
pounds each or over. 

Box No. 63 — 32x27x7. This box will hold ten or twelve 
young tom turkeys weighing under fourteen pounds each. 



34 POULTRY' PACKERS' .GUIDE. 

Box No. 64 — 32x27x7^ inside. This box will hold from 
ten to twelve young torn turkeys, weighing fourteen pounds 
each or over. 

Box No. 70 — 30x173/2x3^ inside. This box will hold 
twelve small roasters, weighing from forty-three to forty-eight 
pounds per dozen, packed single layer roaster style. 

Box No. 71 — 32x19x4 inside. This box will hold twelve 
roasting chickens weighing forty-eight to fifty-nine pounds per 
dozen, packed single layer roaster style; also twelve fowl 
weighing sixty pounds up per dozen. 

Box No. ^2 — 33x20x4^ inside. This box will hold twelve 
heavy roasters weighing sixty pounds up, packed in single 
layer roaster style. 

The specifications used by some manufacturers call for 
thinner lumber than those of others. Nothing should be made 
of less than ^ in. lumber for sides, tops and bottoms, and the 
ends should not be less than Yz in. The following is recom- 
mended : Boxes No i, i A, 5, 5A, 5B should be made with sides 
tops and bottoms ^4 in- Ends ^ in. The balance with the ex- 
ception of 50 to 'J2, inclusive, that is, 10 to 49, inclusive, should 
be made with sides, tops and bottoms y% in. thick and the 
ends should be ^in. Boxes No. 50 to 72, inclusive, should 
have sides, tops and bottoms ^ in. and ends % in. 

With the exception of Boxes 47 to 55, the following class 
of lumber is recommended to those who wish to insist on hav- 
ing a strictly first-class box. One piece sides, one piece ends, 
no cleats, tops and bottoms not to exceed three pieces. The 
larger boxes, 50, 55, 60, 61, 63 and 64 may be made from lum- 
ber as follows. The sides, ends and tops are to be free from 
rot, shake, wone or worm holes. Small round knots are per- 
missable. The bottoms may contain stains, small worm holes 
and sound knots, but must not contain defects that weaken the 
boxes. 

The specifications adopted by the National Association 
of Box Manufacturers are recommended. 

Each and every piece must be up to grade, must be sawed 
smooth and even; the ends and sides must be straight and 
square; and when boxes call for cleated ends, cleats must be 
nailed on ends and ends delivered cleated. 

If the above is followed out strictly you will have boxes 
that are strictly standard and which will not be excelled by 
those of any other packer. 

Of late years, however, Northern mills especially have 
been furnishing a great many boxes with two-piece sides and 
ends. The sides are grooved and the ends are either cleated 
or clinched together with a corrugated iron staple-like fastener 




z 

O 

< 

-J 

-J 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 35 

which is embedded firmly into the wood. Some ends are glued 
and cleated both. Also the tops and bottoms sometimes con- 
sist of four pieces. While these do not make as good boxes as 
the above either in strength or appearance, they can be used. 
Some manufacturers make part of the single layer boxes of 
larger size than the i and 5, say the 25 and 26, and boxes of 
about the same size with sides, tops and bottoms 54 in. Ends 
Yz in. 

CHAPTER XIV. 
Summary. 

In Chapter X, grading for quality is described and dis- 
cussed ; in Chapter XIX, the classifying or assorting for weight 
or size is fully outlined; in Chapter XII the various styles of 
packing are fully described; and in Chapter XIII directions 
for boxing poultry are given including specifications for a very 
complete line of boxes. In this chapter, the information of 
the preceding four chapters is summarized and additional in- 
formation given, so that the packer will have information at 
hand that will enable him not only to put up Standard Packed 
poultry, but any other attractive style he may desire to use 
or that he may have call for. 

The information is classified under three SYSTEMS. The 
first, System A, is very complete, the second. System B, is 
a practical system to be followed out by a large packer, and 
the third, System C, is one that is recommended to a small 
packer. 

System A. 

The following table is designed to show practically all 
the different styles that are attractive in which any and every 
class of Poultry can be put up. It is too comprehensive to be 
used for anything excepting as reference. For systems to be 
used in practice you are referred to Systems B and C. 

EXPLANATORY— In the first column of each table or 
system is given the Class No. This, in addition to indicating 
the kind or variety of poultry, indicates the quality and size 
of the bird, also the general style of packing. For instance, 
Class 18 means that in a box marked in that manner, are 
packed spring chickens of fancy quality, weighing 3 to 35^ 
pounds each, packed Standard Export style (E). 

The remaining columns describe what the Class No. in- 
dicates. In the first column following the class is given the 
quality, in the second and third the weight per bird and the 
weight per dozen, in the next column is given the style of 
packing, indicated clearly and made easy for reference by the 



36 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



letters (A), (B), (C), etc. See Chapter XII. The next col- 
umn shows the box to use, the number referring to those used 
in Chapter XIIL The last column gives the description to 
stencil on the box, if stenciling is desired. See Chapter XV 
for a full description of stenciling. 




System A Tabulated. 



Spring Chickens — Broilers. 
Packed 12 birds in a box. 







a 








•0 






1 


d) 


^ 




w 






.s 


s 




a 






u 


V 


X 


■0 


.•a 






w 


S3 


u 


ti 


eg 
.5 




>> 




"S 


OS 


en 




s 


1 









5 Fancy Under i}i 


Standard Broiler 


A 


I 


Fancy 


5A " 


Variation i 


B 


I 


D. P. Broilers 


10 " ij^-2lb 


Standard Broiler 


A 


I 


Fancy 


loA " 


Variation i 


B 


I 


D. P. Broilers 


15 " 2-2;^ 


Standard Broiler 


A 


5 


Fancy 


15 A " 


Variation i 


B 


5 


D. P. Broilers 


16 N0.2 Under 2^ 


Standard Broiler 


A 


I 


D. P. Broilers 


No. 3 












Variation i 


B 


I 


<i 




Variation 2 


C 


I 


(< 




Variation 3 


D 


I 


<( 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



37 



Spring Chickens — Middle Weights. 

(Exports or Fryers). 
2j^ to 4 lbs. each. 
Packed 12 birds in a box. 



17 Fancy 


2y2-3 lb 


Standard Export 


E 


ID 




17 A " 


" 


Variation i 


F 


ID 




20 " 


" 


Standard Broiler 


A 


25 


Fancy 


20 A " 


" 


Variation i 


B 


25 


Chickens 


20 B " 


" 


Variation 2 


C 


25 




23 


" 


Standard Roaster 


H 


40 or 41 




18 Fancy 


2-3}i lb 


Standard Export 


E 


15 




18 A " 


1/ 


Variation i 


F 


15 




21 


II 


Standard Broiler 


A 


26 


Fancy 


21 A " 


<i 


Variation i 


B 


26 


Chickens 


21 B " 


<i 


Variation 2 


C 


26 




24 


" 


Standard Roaster 


H 


45 or 46 




19 Fancy 


S'A-A lb 


Standard Export 


E 


20 




19 A " 


" 


Variation i 


F 


20 


Fancy 


22 " 


II 


Standard Broiler 


A 


27 


Chickens 


22 A " 


1 1 


Variation 2 


C 


27 




25 " 


II 


Standard Roaster 


H 


46 1 Fancy 


37 


II 


Single Layer " 


K 


70 


Roasters 


26 No. 2 


2>^-3>^ 


Standard Broiler 


A 


25 1 




26 A " 




Variation 2 


C 


15 


D. P. 
Chickens 


26 B " 


" 


Variation 3 


D 


15 


27 


ii 


Standard Roaster 


H 


40 J 


28 No. 2 


3'A-4 


Standard Roaster 


H 


45 Id. p. 


29 A " 




Variation 2 


J 


45 J 


Chickens 



Exports. 

Packers who desire to have their squat packed middle 
weight chickens in the very best possible condition or style 
to be exported, assort them very closely of a size as described 
in Chapter XII. 

All are fancy stock, packed 12 in a box. 
Weight per dozen 



28 Fancy 
28 A " 


29-31 lb 


Standard Export 
Variation i 


E 
F 


10 
10 


\ Fancy 
J Chickens. 


29 Fancy 
29 A " 


32-35 lb 


Standard Export 
Variation i 


E 
F 


15 
15 


\ Fancy 
J Chickens. 


30 Fancy 
30 A " 


36-39 lb 


Standard Export 
Variation i 


E 
F 


15 
15 


■) Fancy 
J Chickens. 


31 Fancy 
31 A •' 


40-43 lb 


Standard Export 
Variation i 


E 
F 


20 
20 


\ Fancy 
J Chickens. 


32 Fancy 
32 A " 


44-47 lb 
<i 


Standard Export 
Variation i 


E 
F 


21 
21 


1 Fancy 
J Chickens. 



38 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



34 Fancy 

34 A " 
38 

38 A " 

35 Fancy 
35 A " 
39 

39 A " 

41 No. 2 
41 No. 2 



4-5 lb 



5 lb up 



4 lb up 
4 lb up 



Spring Chickens — Roasters. 
4 lbs. each and over. 

Standard Roaster H 

Variation 1 I 

Single layer Roaster K 

Variation i I^ 



Standard Roaster 
Variation i 
Single I^ayer " 
Variation i 

Standard Roaster 
Variation i 



H 

I 

L 

Iv 

H 

J 



30 
30 
71 
71 

35 
35 
72 
72 

30 
30 



( Fancy 
I Roasters. 



1 Fancy 
[ Roasters. 



y Roasters. 



Spring Chickens — Stagy or Hard-Meated Roasters. 

In the past these have been quite comomlny called "S' 
Roasters." Dropping the term "S" is advised. 



42 


Fancy 


Under 4 lb 


Standard Roaster 


H 


45 


) Fancy 
J Roasters. 


43 


Fancy 


Over 4 lb 


Standard Roaster 


H 


30 


\ Fancy • 
J Roasters. 




Fowls. 






Packed 12 birds 


in a box. 








45 


Fancy 


Under 3 lb 


Standard Roaster 


H 


40 


Fancy 

D. P. Fowl. 


50 


<• 


41 II 


Variation i, Ex. 


F 


10 


50 


A " 


ti II 


Variation 2, Bx, 


G 


10 


46 
51 


Fancy 


3-3>^_ lb 


Standard Roaster 
Variation i. Ex. 


H 

F 


46 
15 


"1 Fancy 

/D. P. Fowl. 


47 
52 


Fancy 


3^4-4 lb 


Standard Roaster 
Variation i, Ex. 


H 

F 15 


45 
or 20 


"( Fancy 
j'D. P. Fowl 


48 
53 


Fancy 


4-5 lb 


Standard Roaster 
Single Layer R'r 


H 30 
K 


or 31 
71 


"1 Fancy 
/D. P. Fowl 


49 
54 


Fancy 


5 lb up 


Standard Roaster 
Single Layer R'r 


H 35 
K 


or 36 
72 


"1 Fancy 
j'D. P. Fowl 


65 


No. 2 


All weights 


Standard Roaster 
Variati on 2 


H40 

J 


or 45 


1 D. P. Fowl 




Ducks. 






Packed 12 birds 


in a box. 








75 
75 


Fancy 
A " 


A'Aup 


Standard Duck 
Variation i 


N 



35 


\ Fancy 
1 Ducks 


76 
76 


Fancy 
A " 


Under 4}4 


Standard Duck 
Variation i 


N 



30 


") Fancy 
i Duck 


78 
78 


No. 2 
A " 


All weights 


Standard Duck 
Variation 2 


N 
P 


30 


y Ducks 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



39 



Packed 12 to the box. 


Geese. 








84 Fancy Over 10 lb 
84 A " 


Standard Duck 
Variation i 


N 



55 


\ Fancy 
J Geese 


85 Fancy Under 10 lb 
85 A " 


Standard Duck 
Variation i 


N 



50 


■) Fancy 
J Geese 


87 No. 2 All weights 
87 A " 


Standard Duck 
Variation 2 

Old Cox. 


N 
P 


50 


> Geese 


90 All weights 

91 Fancy 5-6 lb 

92 " 6 lb up 


Any number packed 
Standard Roaster 
Standard Roaster 


in bbls 
H 
H 


35 
37 


Old Cox 
Cox 
Cox 


Turkeys — Hen Turkeys. 

Young and Old 
100 Fancy All weights Standard Roaster H 

Young hen turkeys 10 or 12 to box 
loi Fancy Under 8 lb Standard Broiler A 


50 

60 


Fancy 

Hen Turkeys 
Fancy Young 
Hen Turkeys 



Young hen turkeys 10 or 12 to box 

Fancy Over 8 lb Standard Broiler A 

Young Toms — All Weights. 



61 













Fancy Young 


103 


Fancy 


All weights 


Standard Roaster H 


55 


Tom Turkeys 




Young 


Toms, 10 or 


13 in box 






104 


Fancy 


Under 14 lb 


Standard Broiler A 


63 


II II 




Young 


Toms 10 or ] 


;2 in box 






105 


Fancy 


Over 14 lb 


Standard Broiler A 

Old Tom Turkeys. 

(8 to box). 


64 


K l( 


107 


Fancy 


Under 16 lb 


Standard Roaster H 


50 


Old Toms 


108 


Fancy 


Over 16 lb 


Standard Roaster H 


55 


II II 


109 


Fancy 




Packed any humber in barrels 


II II 








Guineas. 






no 


Young 




Standard Roaster H 


40 


Young Guineas 


III 


Old 




Standard Roaster H 

Squabs. 

(5 dozen to box.) 


45 


Guineas 


115 


Fancy 


3 layers squatted 20 in layer Box 40 or 


45 


Fancy Squuabs 








Pigeons 












(5 dozen to box) 






120 


Fancy 


3 layers Roaster style, 20 in layer Box 40 to 45 Pigeons 








Capons. 






125 


Fancy 


Under 6 lb 


Capon M 


47 


Fancy Capons 


125 A " 


" 


Standard Roaster H 


35 


" " 


126 


Fancy 


6 to 7 lb 


Capon M 


48 


Fancy Capons 


126 A " 


" 


Standard Roaster H 


37 


" " 


127 


Fancy 


Over 7 lb 


Capon M 


49 


Fancy Capons 


127A " 


it 


Standard Roaster H 


37 


1. 11 


X28 


Slips All weights 


Standard Roaster H 


35 


Capons 



40 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



System B. 

The following table is recommended for the use of packers 
who handle a considerable amount of poultry. 

As only one style of packing is recommended in this table 
for each class or size of bird, it has been difficult in some cases 
to choose between two or three commonly in use. This should 
be borne in mind by the packer and if the style given does not 
suit his fancy, he is referred to System A, from which table he 
can make a choice to suit his fancy. 



5 

lO 

15 
16 



17 
18 

25 
26 
27 



42 

43 



58 

59 
60 



65 



75 
76 

78 



Fancy Under i ^ lb 
Fancy i>^-2 lb 
Fancy 2 2% lb 
No. 2 Under 2% lb 



Broilers. 

Standard Broiler 
Standard Broiler 
Standard Broiler 
Standard Broiler 



Middle Weight Chickens. 

Fancy 23^-3 lb Standard Export E 

Fancy 3-3^^ lb Standard Export E 

Fancy s}4-4 lb Standard Roaster H 

No, 2 2>i-3>^ Standard Roaster H 

No. 2 3%-4- Standard Roaster H 

Roasters. 

Standard Roaster H 

Standard Roaster H 

Standard Roaster H 

Stag Roasters. 

Under 4 Standard Roaster H 

Over 4 Standard Roaster H 



10 
15 
45 
45 
45 



Fancy Broilers 



D. P. Broilers 



Fancy Chickens 



34 Fancy 4-5 lb 

35 Fancy 5 lb up 
41 No. 2 4 lb up 



30 Fancy Roasters 

35 " 

30 Roasters. 



45 Fancy Roaster 
30 Fancy Roaster 



Fancy 
Fancy 



Fowl. 

43^^ lb up Standard Roaster H 30 Fancy D. P. Fowl 

i%-A% Standard Roaster H 45 " " " 

Fancy Under 2>% Standard Roaster H 40 " " " 

If it is desired to sort Fowls closer, use Classes 45, 46, 47, 48, and 

49, System A. 

No. 2 All weights Standard Roaster H 40 or 45 D. P. Fowl 



Fancy 
Fancy 
No. 2 AU weights 



Ducks. 

Standard Duck 
Standard Duck 
Standard Duck 



N 

N 
N 



35 
30 
30 



Fancy Ducks 



Ducks 



N 


55 


Fancy Geese 


N 


50 


II II 


N 


50 


Geese 



POULTRY PACKERS* GUIDE. 41 

Geese. 

84 Fancy Over lo lb Standard Duck 

85 Fancy Under lo lb Standard Duck 
87 No. a All weights Standard Duck 

Old Roosters. 

90 All grades unassorted packed in barrels or boxes. 

92 Pigeons in boxes not assorted. 

Hen Turkeys — Old and Young Mixed. 

100 Fancy All weights Standard Roasters H 50 Fancy Hen Turkeys 

Young Tom Turkeys. 
103 Fancy All weights Standard Roaster H 55 F'cy young Tom Turks 

Old Tom Turkeys. 

(8 to the box) 
108 Fancy All weights Standard Roaster H 55 Old Toms 

X. X. X. Poultry. 

141 Cull fowl, broilers^ fryers and roasters, packed any number in barrels 
or boxes. 

NOTE — Copies of System B will be furnished for loc 
each, printed on heavy cardboard for use of graders. Address 
publishers. 

System C. 

The following table is designed for the use of small pack- 
ers. All small packers should read carefully the information 
given following the table. 

Spring Chickens. 

(12 to the box). 



Class 


; Description & Stenciling 


Weight per Dozen 


Style Packing 




Box 


200 


Fancy Broilers 


Under 30 lb 


Standard Broiler 


A 


5 


201 


Fancy Chickens 


30-42 lb 


Standard Roaster 


H 


41 


202 


Fancy (Small) Roasters 42-47 lb 


Standard Roaster 


H 


46 


203 


Fancy Roaster 


48-59 lb 


Standard Roaster 


H 


30 


204 


Fancy Roaster 


60 up 


Standard Roaster 


H 


35 


205 


No. 2 Roaster 
Packed 12 birds in 


(All sizes) 

Fowl. 

a box. 


Standard Roaster 


H 


46 


58 


Fancy D. P. Fowl 


54 up 


Standard Roaster 


H 


30 


59 


Fancy 


39-53 


Standard Roaster 


H 


46 


60 


Fancy 


Under 38 


Standard Roaster 


H 


41 


65 


No. 2 


All weights 

Ducks. 

12 to the box. 


Standard Roaster 


H 


41 


75 


Fancy 


Over 54 


Standard Duck 


N 


35 


76 


Fancy 


Under 53 


Standard Duck 


N 


30 


78 


No. 2 


All weights 


Standard Duck 


N 


30 



42 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

You will note that the above system only requires a sup- 
ply of five sizes of boxes, i, e., 5, 41, 46, 30, 35. As the small 
packer has few broilers, the box 5 can be most easily dispensed 
with. In fact, it is very easy to cut the number of boxes re- 
quired down to three, using boxes 41, 46, and 30. To do this 
combine classes 203 and 204, using box 30; also pack all sizes 
of ducks in one size, box 30. 

It may surprise the reader to be told that acceptable box- 
ing of poultry can be done using only one size box, No. 30, 
though, of course, all grades cannot be packed a dozen to the 
box. Birds of one size should be packed in the box, packing 14, 
16, 18, 20 or more, stencilling a class number in the upper left 
hand corner of the face of the box to indicate the size of the 
bird, and either stencilling the number of birds contained in 
the box in the upper right hand corner or marking it in pencil 
around the corner on the left upper corner of the side of the 
box, and invoicing to the receiver the number and kinds of 
birds in a box. 

In packing grades 200, 201, 59, 60, 65 in box 30, it is 
often desirable to pack the lower layer either breasts up or 
breasts down, broiler variation i (B), or variation 2 (C), pack- 
ing in as many as the box will conveniently hold, and packing 
the top layer Standard Roaster Style (H), packing same the 
narrow way of box 30, and instead of six birds on the top layer 
use 8 or even 10. This will make a good appearing box when 
opened and if the buyer gets the size chickens he wants, it is 
often of little consequence to him how many he gets in the 
box as long as he knows when buying how many are contain- 
ed in the box. Of course, the above cannot be taken as a 
standard method, still the most desirable poultry, the Roasters, 
the Heavy Fowl, and the Ducks will all be packed a dozen to 
the box and standard. Using one box is immeasurably better 
than using barrels, and is recommended to those packers who 
desire to start in slowly in getting away from the old order of 
things. 

CHAPTER XV. 

Stencilling. 

Some of the very largest packers put out their poultry 
under a trade mark. It is an advantage for them to do it, be- 
cause they generally market their own stock. But the or- 
dinary packer markets his poultry through a jobber or makes 
use of a broker or commission merchant, and it is often de- 
sirable not to have too much stencilled on the box, as the job- 
ber can in this way assemble the product of several, or quite 
a number of packers who have put up their poultry in a stan- 




z 

O 

P 
< 

H 
c/) 

:d 

-J 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 



43 



dard manner and can put them out as the same "pack" or 
under the same name, or even under his own trade mark. 

The simplest form of stencilling is to place the class num- 
ber in the upper left hand corner and the net weight in the 
lower right hand corner, advising the receiver or buyer clearly 
as to what each class number indicates. 

The following represents the end of a poultry box sten- 
cilled in the simplest manner and yet giving all the information 
necessary : 




The above indicates that there are in the box 12 fancy 
grade spring chickens of roaster size and that they weigh 53 
pounds net, and are packed Standard Roaster Style (H). 

If it is desired to stencil more, the following should be 
taken as a model 













:34 






lOOI 

W 
FANCY 


12 : 




D. 


P 


ROASTERS. 




:6i 






8 


53 : 



The figure 34 indicates that the roasters weigh between 
4 and 5 pounds each, 12 indicates that there are 12 birds in the 
box; lOOi is the serial number of the box, and is 
changed with each box and is used in keeping an exact rec- 
ord in invoicing. W indicates at what house the stock was 
packed, and Fancy D. P. Roasters is the trade name. 61 is the 
gross weight of the box, and 8 the tare and 53 the net weight. 

Some packers place a figure before the class number to 
indicate where the stock was packed, thus: 334 would indi- 
cate that the 34 class or Fancy D. P. Roasters were packed at 
a certain house or by a certain packer. 

In stencilling X. X. or No. 2 Poultry use no indication 
other than the Class No. to show their quality. It will do no 
good, as the Class No. indicates the quality to the receiver. If 
it is desired to stencil a description of the contents, stencil the 
same as fancy goods, but omit using the word "Fancy." 

If a trade mark is used, it is frequently printed on each 



44 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

side. Sometimes it is printed on the opposite end to the one 
stencilled. When boxes are ordered in carloads the trade 
mark will generally be printed free of cost. 

See that all stencilling is neatly done. Using rubber 
stamps in place of stencils may make a neater appearance. 

CHAPTER XVI. 
Precooling and Shipping. 

If possible all dressed poultry that is dry packed should 
be precooled before shipping. If the weather is cold or in the 
case of the large packer, who has artificial cooling facilities, 
this is very easily done. 

In cold weather the packer should hold his poultry be- 
fore shipping at a temperature as near freezing as possible. 
It should not be allowed to freeze if it can be prevented. Lit- 
tle danger need be feared unless the temperature is below 27 
degrees Fahrenheit for a length of time. Poultry in boxes will 
not freeze even if held at this temperature for some length of 
time, say 48 hours, or even 72 hours. 

In loading poultry into a car, it should be at as cold a 
temperature as possible, but without being frozen. 

The average packer has not in the past paid as much at- 
tention to precooling during the winter months as its import- 
ance demands. Poultry cannot be loaded into a car on a mild 
winter or fall day, even if fairly well cooled out before pack- 
ing, with the expectation of its reaching its destination in 
prime condition. 

When the weather is mild with the temperature at night 
dropping below freezing, it is better not to load into the car at 
night unless the same has been beef iced. Leaving the poul- 
try in a room with the windows open is much better. If the 
weather continues mild, beef ice the car and separate the boxes 
well in order that the cold air can get at them readily. To 
"beef ice" a car, fill the bunkers with crushed ice and mix with 
it 10 per cent to 20 per cent of coarse crushed rock salt. 

If the packer is equipped with artificial cooling facilities 
and if box packed poultry is shipped early in the season while 
the weather is warm and with the likelihood of the car vary- 
ink greatly in temperature en route, especial care should be 
taken in precooling. 

If the poultry will reach the market in two or three days' 
time, it may not be necessary to hold same before shipping at 
a lower temperature than 32 dgrees to 34 degrees, but if the 
poultry is to be shipped a long distance and will be on the 
way from 6 to 8 days, or even more, it should be thoroughly 
precooled by holding in a room at 27 degrees from 48 to ']2 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 45 

hours before being loaded into "beef iced" refrigerator cars. 
Complete icing instructions should be inserted in billing out 
cars, and it is well to make a record of the temperature of 
the cooling room at the time of loading, and also of the car 
when it is loaded. Such records are often of advantage in 
settling claims against the railroad company for poor service. 

Cars should be loaded carefully and the boxes should be 
piled to the same height in all parts of the car. Especial care 
should be taken in loading mixed cars. If eggs are loaded in 
the same car, they should be piled by themselves and be well 
braced. In summer, eggs as well as the boxed poultry should 
be precooled before loading. Eggs that have been held at a 
warm temperature, if loaded with poultry, even if the poultry 
is well cooled, will in cooling draw the cold from the poultry 
as much as from the ice in the bunkers. 

In this connection it is well to insert a caution to those 
shippers who ship mixed carloads of butter, eggs and ice- 
packed poultry in summer. Hold the butter and eggs in the 
coldest room you have before loading into a car with iced 
poultry, or a large part of the ice in your poultry packages 
will be melted before the car leaves the railroad yards of your 
town. It is recommended to "beef ice" the car well and load 
the butter and eggs the day preceding loading the poultry, 
placing same on racks so as to keep the packages from becom- 
ing wet from the water escaping from the barrels of iced poul- 
try. It is indeed an artist who can load a mixed car of butter, 
eggs and poultry, and have it reach its destination in first class 
order. 

CHAPTER XVII. 
Freezing and Marketing. 

If one has a freezer at hand, either in his own plant or in 
the same town, he is certainly well equipped to handle the 
poultry business to advantage, I do not wish to be understood 
that it is advisable to freeze all the poultry that is dressed. 
Poultry always should be marketed immediately if a legitimate 
profit can be secured, but the nature of the business is such 
that the speculative element enters into it to such a large ex- 
tent that freezing hardly can be avoided. A large quantity of 
stock each year of necessity has to be frozen to hold for a 
later market, as the marketing of poultry, especially in Oc- 
tober, November and December is in larger volume than the 
consumptive demand and the surplus has to be frozen up for 
a later market. 

Most poultry is frozen in the large cities. An expensive 
plant is required and a vast amount of poultry and other per- 



46 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

ishable products must be handled by the freezer in order to 
make it pay. All freezers are operated in conjunction with 
and sell to the packer or may act as the agent of the packer, 
cold storage warehouses. 

Poultry to be frozen should be kept cold without freezing 
until it is placed in a sharp freezer and held at from 4 de- 
grees to 10 degrees below zero. If it is frozen slowly, it is 
apt to become discolored and dark and will not thaw out with 
a good apearance. The boxes should be stripped well, mere 
laths placed between the layers is not sufficient. At least 
two by fours or even four by fours are recommended to be 
placed between the layers, and the boxes should be 
placed about 4 to 6 inches apart in the layers ; in other words, 
the cold air should be allowed free access to all sides of the 
box. 

It should be left in this sharp freezer for several days and 
then can be transferred to a room 16 degrees above zero for 
permanent holding. The general charge for freezing and 
holding is from i-ioc to i-8c per lb. per month, with a mini- 
mum charge of two months' storage; any rate above this is 
exorbitant. 

In freezing stock some packers make it a practice to keep 
the stock frozen before the first of December separate from 
the stock frozen or packed after that date, as there is quite 
a difference in the quality of the stock. This applies especially 
to the spring chickens. After December first there is a larger 
proportion of semi-staggy chickens, chickens with large but- 
tons or spurs and many have to be graded in with No. i that 
will freeze slightly dark. Generally as good a price or nearly 
as good can be obtained, but the outlet is narrowed and it is 
more difficult to move the stock. It is sometimes possible 
to sell the early packed stock at a premium by keeping out 
the later stock. 

Marketing. 

It would be out of place, misleading and possibly preju- 
dical to the business to map out any general method of mar- 
keting or to express any opinion as to the best outlet. Each 
packer must find his own outlet, and as in any other business 
he will find plenty of interested advisers. 

It is not out of place, however, to describe the way in 
which many operate. Some freeze and hold in their own plant 
and sell direct from same, others sell what they can, some- 
times at a profit and sometimes in order to realize ready 
money for carrying on further operations, storing the re- 
mainder in some large center. Others store all the "pack" 



POULTRY PACKERS^ GUIDE. 47 

at some large center securing advances from the cold storage 
house for a considerable part of the cost or value. It is well 
to store in a large center as the chances are greater for se- 
curing a buyer, as many buyers come to the larger centers 
shortly after the first of the year and at the time that prac- 
tically all the poultry has been marketed, to secure their sup- 
plies. 

In general, storing nearest the ultimate consumer is the 
best policy if the storage charges and other accommodations 
are equal and if the goods can be put there without danger 
of deterioration in transit. 

It ought to be needless to advise selling when the other 
fellow wants the goods if you have a reasonable profit. 

CHAPTER XVIII. 
Supplementary. 

In this chapter has been collected information gathered 
from actual experience. There is no particular connection be- 
tween many of the parts, a number of subjects relating to 
poultry dressing and marketing will be discussed. 

Determining the Age or Class of a Dressed Chicken. 

Late in the season it becomes difficult to select out some 
of the springs from the fowl or old hens. Especially is this 
true of the full grown pullets. It is not deemed advisable to 
grade the pullets separate from the other roasters as they will 
not bring much or any better prices than the old hens or fowl, 
excepting in isolated outlets. To determine whether a chicken 
should be graded as a Fowl or Roaster, press the rear end of 
the breastbone ; if it appears hard and unyielding it is an old 
bird or fowl, if soft and yielding it is a young bird or Roaster. 
Determining the Age of a Dressed Duck. 

Some packers select out the young ducks from the old, 
which can be readily done by squeezing the windpipe between 
the thumb and forefinger; if it can be compressed and flat- 
tened with slight resistance the duck is a young one; if the 
windpipe resists and feels like a solid whipcord it is an old 
bird. By selecting out the young, the older birds can often 
be sold at the regular price, and a premium price obtained for 
the young. This practice is only mentioned without particu- 
larly recommending it, as most packers think it well not to 
select the old from the young. 

Pigeons. 

Some packers dry-pick pigeons, but the majority crack 
their necks, allow to cool, and pack with feathers on. Be 



48 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

careful not to get the feathers bloody; if the neck is properly- 
broken no blood will appear on the outside of the bird. 

When sufficient pigeons are not at hand to fill a box hold- 
ing five dozen, use a smaller box and pack to fill, marking 
and invoicing the number of birds. 

Squabs. 

Squabs should be dry-picked and some grade as to size. 
A great many are marketed by the raisers themselves, packing 
in ice and tying a half dozen of a size in a bunch, using for 
packing any suitable size box at hand. 

The squab business was somewhat overdone a few years 
ago and many dropped out leaving their plants idle. But 
those now engaged claim to be making a profit. Few squabs 
are handled by the poultry packer. 

If sufficient are not at hand to pack a five-dozen box use 
a smaller box and pack to fill, marking and invoicing the 
number of birds in the box. 

Ducks and Geese. 

Sometimes geese are packed in small barrels, though for 
freezing barrels are not as good as boxes. 

The smaller grade of geese are not generally of as good 
quality as are those weighing over lo pounds each, and often 
they are very red skinned or dark colored when dressed, and 
it may at times be necessary to pack a separate grade between 
the Fancy X. X. grade, which can be designated as "Choice," 

Geese should be packed soon as cooled properly, for if left 
exposed to the air they take on an oily and disagreeable ap- 
pearance. 

Care should be taken not to pay too high a price for Geese 
as there is only ready sale for the finest. The "Choice" and 
the smaller size birds are generally difficult to dispose of. 

In many communities, especially where the Germans are 
numerous, a great many fine ducks and geese are dressed at 
home in order that the housewives may keep the feathers. 
These dressed birds can generally be bought at a reasonable 
price, and will show up well with packers' dressed stock. The 
buyer should insist on the birds not being drawn and that the 
heads be left on. Generally the birds are brought in very 
well plucked. 

In steaming or scalding ducks remove the outside skin of 
the shanks and toes. The underskin is of a fine orange color 
and improves the appearance of the bird. Often the wings are 
turned and folded over the back of the bird in packing. See 
Broiler, the bird on the left of Ilustration 2. 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 49 

Sometimes the condition of the ducks is such that it is 
necessary to make a grade between the X. X. and Fancy. 
These are hardly No. 2 birds, and yet they are not fancy. If 
you find that your fancy grade is not uniform in appearance, 
it is well to make the additional selection and call it "Choice" 
or some other name not fancy. 

Capons. 

Capons generally sell at a price near to that of turkeys, 
often at the same price, and occasionally at a higher price. 

Considering the ease with which the operation can be per- 
formed, and the small cost of feeding compared with the price 
received for the finished bird, it stands to reason that the 
number marketed will gradually increase. They are now re- 
ceived from isolated communities. In some communities 
there are none raised. 

For information concerning capons and caponizing you 
are referred to the supplementary part of "Feeding Chickens 
for the Packing House," published by the Egg Reporter. 

Guineas. 

The Guinea Fowl is becoming more popular each year. 
They are now served at all the leading restaurants and are 
considered a delicacy. They appear on the bill of fare under 
their own name. 

Guineas are almost universally sold by the pair or piece. 
They are very easily prepared for market as described in 
a former chapter. 

In the past young and old Guineas have been packed to- 
gether and any number has been packed in boxes. It is recom- 
mended to select the young from the old and pack separately, 
a dozen to the box. Guineas put up in this manner will net 
you more money. Keep the feathers smooth and be sure to 
cool out thoroughly. 

Turkeys. 

In some parts of the country the turkey crop is growing 
lighter each year. Also the handling of turkeys has become 
so speculative by nature and the early holiday demand so 
fluctuating, that most packers do not try to handle any more 
turkeys than they actually have to. 

A turkey will not fatten properly until the ground is well 
covered with snow. Before that time they will roam too much. 
After the snow falls they will stay around the farm buildings 
and can be fattened rapidly. Unless a turkey is fat it is not a 



52 POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 

desirable table fowl, and will not bring a good price. Thin 
turkeys will dress out blue and unattractive in appearance, and 
such should not be purchased. Be careful also in buying live 
turkeys to select out the crooked-breasted birds and pay low- 
er price for same, as you will have to sell them at a discount. 

Old Roosters. 

There is considerable difference in the quality of old 
roosters, and I will venture the opinion that some time in the 
future the best appearing and best meated ones will be se- 
lected out and packed separately. At present most of the de- 
mand is from canners, but I consider that the better grade of 
old roosters should be put up so that they could be marketed 
among the poorer classes desiring a cheap, but wholesome 
fowl. 

Fancy Dry-Picked Roasters. 

If a packer is located in a territory where there are a 
great many Plymouth Rocks raised he is lucky, as he will have 
a larger per centage of soft-meated roasting chickens weigh- 
ing over 4 pounds each. 

Not only do Roasters sell well at a higher price than do 
the middle weight chickens, but they can be prepared for 
market with less cost, especially of picking, as it costs no more 
to pick a 4 or 5 pound bird than it does to pick a 2 or 3 pound 
bird. Also the cost of handling, packing and boxing is some 
less per pound. It quite often pays to sell the middle weights 
alive, if a profitable outlet can be found for same, and dress 
only the heavy stock. Especially true is this where a large 
number of Leghorns are raised, for not only are they of de- 
sirable size and weight, but are generally staggy, dark and 
hard meated, due to their maturing at an earlier age. 

When packing old roosters in barrels first line the barrel 
with parchment paper allowing the paper to come several 
inches above the top, remove the upper hoop and turrj the 
edges of the liner down and replace hoop; this will keep the 
paper in place while packing the barrel. 

Do not pack the barrel more than flush with the top. 
Some put a layer of parchment between each layer but it is 
not necessary ; put a sheet of parchment over the top and take 
off hoop and turn edges of liner over. Head with burlap. 

X. X. or No. 2 Poultry. 

This grade of poultry may be packed either Broiler style 
or Roaster style. Boxes lined with parchment paper, heads 
wrapped, but birds generally not wrapped, although some 




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< 



POULTRY PACKERS' GUIDE. 51 

packers make a practice of wrapping all No. 2 birds, thinking 
that they sell better. Less wrapping is done now than sev- 
eral years ago, which would indicate that wrapping is 
only an extra expense with no compensating gain in price. It 
is desirable but not necessary, to pack X. X. grade poultry a 
dozen to the box, but in order to clean up birds weighing 2^/2 
to 4 pounds can be packed in the same box. And if a dozen 
will not fill the box, pack more, and mark and invoice the 
number of birds contained in the box. 

Fatted Chickens and Fowl. 

A large portion of the fowl in Class 60 are not of any too 
good quality; they are not No. 2 or X. X. birds, but look a little 
rough and hard-meated. There are in some communities 
some very fine soft-meated stock in this grade that could 
be sorted out and packed separately, and this stock will bring 
a higher price and not materially hurt the sale of the re- 
mainder. It is well to put another grade number on the box 
and to use a different style of packing. Standard Export Style 
(E), or Variation i-(F), is recommended. 

It is also true that in some communities there are a large 
number of the heavier fowl that show that they have been es- 
pecially fattened. They are of a better quality than most 
fowl that are put through a milk feeding station, and there is 
no reason why, if they run especially fine, they should not be 
selected out and packed separately; either Export Style (E) 
or Single Roaster Style (K). 



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